


Galaxy Under Siege

by jitterygummy



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: F/M, Mental Abuse, Not Beta Read, Physical Abuse, Reylo - Freeform, Slow Burn, Slow Burn Reylo, but its complete ok, just a lot of suffering, kissing solves a lot of problems, lots of convenient plotlines, slight AU, this is shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-05-25 00:12:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 44
Words: 98,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6172291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jitterygummy/pseuds/jitterygummy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the face-off with Kylo Ren on the Starkiller Base, Rey again finds herself a captive of the mysterious Knight of Ren who is not all that he seems.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Rey's eyes snapped open, immediately taking in the room around her. She was lying on an uncomfortable black couch within what seemed to be a small living quarters, judging by the single bed shoved in the corner of the room. Dim lights shone from a crevice running around the top of the walls, and a blaster hung by the door to her right. She began to sit up, the process made more difficult by her bound hands. What had happened? Last she remembered was a snow-covered forest, and then the ground trembling beneath her.

"You're awake. The medic droids weren't sure how long you would be out." The voice sounded from her left.

Rey's head whipped toward it, and her vision immediately blurred so she could only see a figure in black sitting in a chair near her. "What…?"

Kylo Ren, who was the only person she knew who wore all black and who had a voice amplified by a mask, stood and walked to a small table near him, pouring some dark liquid in a glass. "I'd offer you some Corellian brandy, but the medic droids would probably shock me if you drank some with that head wound."

Rey's vision finally stabilized, and she squinted at the former Jedi. "What are you doing?"

"You are my guest. Perhaps this time you will not offend me by leaving early." Kylo's hand moved up to his helmet, and Rey heard it unlock before he pulled it off. He took a deep drink from the glass and turned to look at her, allowing her to see the red scar running from his right jaw to under his right eye. "Or by cutting open my face."

Rey frowned and pulled at the cuffs on her wrists. "Do you commonly restrain your guests?"

Kylo sat back in the nearby chair, and Rey could see he was moving stiffly. She felt a surge of triumph, knowing that the murder in front of her had been injured in their forest fight. "You did give me this scar." The left side of his mouth twitched, and Rey could not decide if he was amused or holding back a scowl. "I thought I would give you another chance to accept my offer to teach you. You know nothing of the Force, and I am the only one in the galaxy who knows how to properly use it."

Rey met the young man's eyes, trying to read his intentions. "I am assuming you're only offering because you couldn't get into my head with your little tricks the last time."

Kylo's dark eyes narrowed, and his expression became stormy. "You're powerful. I'll give you that, but you can do so much more with the dark side. Trained, you can do anything. Even find your family."

Rey hesitated at his words. He'd touched on her deepest desire, but he only knew that because of those mind tricks he played. Her mind was the only thing she could count on, and he had just invited himself in. There was no way in hell she would allow him to become her teacher, and she was certainly not going to allow herself to learn those tricks to impose upon others. "No."

Kylo Ren's gloved hand came up, and the Force closed around her mind. Her eyes closed, and she concentrated as she had before to keep him away from the map that BB-8 had shown her. Her head wound throbbed, and she grimaced, trying to pull as much of the Force as she could muster to keep him out. Flashes of her short time on the Falcon came to her mind, and she saw Finn grinning at her after they'd escaped Jakku. _Finn._ Suddenly all her thoughts went to her friend, and Kylo gave a low hiss as he was shoved out of her mind.

Reasoning that he had already invaded her mind, she tried to do the same to him as she had managed before, but the wound on her left temple was beginning to bleed again, and she couldn't muster up enough concentration. Glaring at the Knight of Ren, she demanded, "Where's Finn?"

Kylo snarled and stood, and the Force gripped her neck, slamming her into the wall behind the low couch. "You're in no position to demand answers from me!"

His free hand went to his lightsaber, and it had just crackled to life when to door opened, and a redhead with an arrogant expression sauntered inside, looking like a child eager to tattle on a classmate.

"Ren, the Supreme Leader has ordered that the prisoner is to remain alive. Since you can't control yourself, I will take her off your hands."

Rey's last memory before the Force forced her unconscious was the red lightsaber slashing at the small table of drinks.

 

**AN: I started this fic back in December on ff.net. It is about 40 chapters in so far, so stayed tuned as I get all the chapters up here or head on over there if you don't want to wait. Also, I besiege you to get in a few chapters before making your judgments. I can tell my writing improved as I solidified the plot, plus the chapters do get longer. Please also note that much of this story is inspired by World Under Siege written by lone on FF.net with her generous permission. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

For the second time in 24 hours, Rey woke in a strange room. This time, she woke to find herself in a tiny, brightly lit holding cell. She lay in the middle of the floor as no furniture adorned the room, and two opposite walls had some sort of reflective surface that was divided by crevices. Her hands were still bound, but she managed to pull herself to her knees and shuffle over to one of the walls, examining her features in the surface.

Her face was covered in unwashed dirt and sweat, but Rey was not terribly concerned. She had been dirtier living among the sands of Jakku. She had also suffered her fair share of injuries as she had scavenged through various ships, falling and touching less friendly equipment. Reaching up with her bound hands, she flinched as she touched the wound marring her left temple. It was about the length of her thumb and about as wide as two of her thumbs.

Several curse words flew into her mind as she pulled her hands away from the wound. It was obviously deeper than she could see, since her thoughts seemed to be muddled. She'd suffered a concussion once on Jakku, and it had taken her weeks to heal, not to mention she had continually forgotten the way back to her make-shift home.

Leaning against the reflective wall, Rey pulled at her cuffs experimentally. They glowed a dim blue color, and she could not see where they opened. She was unfamiliar with the technology, and she could not exactly use her hands to fully explore and figure them out.

Glancing around the small room, Rey noted with a small grin that her captors had not placed a Stormtrooper inside the cell. What a shame they had actually learned from their previous mistake. Rey could see a rectangular outline on one of the walls, the door, but she saw no immediate way of opening it. She did not even move to try opening it. If they kept her hands restrained, the door would no doubt be locked, and she did not want to waste precious energy going over to try. The crawl over to examine her face had made her a little dizzy, so she shut her eyes, intending to get some rest.

_Kylo Ren fell back on to the snow covered ground, a cry of pain escaping his lips. Rey paced in front of him with the blue lightsaber held in one hand, watching the Knight of Ren closely. She had just cut open the side of his face, but as far as she was concerned, the murderer deserved far worse. She hated those who killed without provocation. Han had not been threatening him…_

_Kylo held out his hand for his lightsaber, and his fingers closed around the cross-guarded hilt just as the ground began trembling. Rey turned to see flames leaping from the thermal oscillator and then let out a scream as a crack opened just under her. She began to fall, smashing her head against the side of the newly formed fissure, her eyes closing as a black glove closed around her wrist._

The door slid open, waking Rey with a start. The wound on her temple throbbed painfully as a General Hux strolled in, carrying a tray. He dropped it in front of her, his lips curling in a disdainful sneer as water sloshed out of the bowl and the piece of hard bread rolled onto the floor. "I do not usually food to _prisoners,_ girl, but the Stormtroopers are apparently too stupid to resist a little Force mind trick. Don't worry. They're all soon going to be trained to block that out."

Rey smirked up at the general, stretching her legs out casually and bumping the bread with her foot. "Aw, did I demote you to prison duty?"

Hux only scoffed, and Rey felt disappointed. Apparently, she could not provoke him as easily as Kylo Ren. "I am superiorly trained. The Supreme Leader has trained me to counter Jedi tricks."

He turned to leave, but Rey held up her cuffed wrists. "How am I supposed to eat with bound hands? It's not like I can go anywhere."

Hux glanced back at her as he crossed the threshold. "Figure that out yourself, desert scum."

The door slid shut behind him as he stalked away.

Rey waited until she heard his footsteps retreat and then stood slowly so as not to aggravate her wound before walking over to the door. A small gap remained open with the hard bread wedged between it. She slowly pushed open the door and grabbed the bread, taking a bite of the dented pastry as she quickly slipped down the hall.


	3. Chapter 3

Rey devoured her bread as she moved quietly down the hall, trying to keep her attention on the connecting corridors to hear footsteps. She turned down several hallways, soon getting lost in the labyrinth of the ship. Or perhaps her head wound was just making her confused. She could tell it was fairly small ship, by First Order standards, anyway. Guessing by the doors she passed, Rey supposed two Millennium Falcons would fit comfortably inside. A couple glimpses in some empty rooms led her to conclude the ship was a medic ship. It must have been the largest ship still functional during their evacuation of the Starkiller Base. And, of course, a First Order medic ship would have a holding cell or two. What else was she expecting?

After a few minutes, she heard two sets of footsteps approaching and immediately hid inside of a doorway, trying to pry it open with her still-bound hands. The door remained firmly closed. Spotting a keypad nearby, she frantically pressed a bunch of buttons, trying to force the door open. Still nothing. " _Idiot!"_ she scolded herself. She knew machines, and mindless pressing would never work, but her thoughts were still jumbled with the wound. The footsteps were getting closer.

" _Come on, you can do this,"_ she pep talked to herself, her heart pounding as she examined the keypad. The dim light on her cuffs glowed as she ran her bound hands over the machine. She could hear voices now from the owners of the footsteps. She could not fight without a weapon, and even with one, she doubted she would stay on her feet for long with the blasted wound messing up her vision. Thinking of vision, the light on the stupid cuffs were starting to irritate her.

" _Why does everything the First Order have need to be so dramatic? Regular cuffs would do the same job, but no, they have to glow ominously,"_ Rey grumbled to herself. No, she could not think about the cuffs now; she needed to get the blasted door open to hide! The damned head wound was getting her easily distract – _The cuffs!_

Rey raised her arms above her head and brought down the cuffs as hard as she could against the keypad. It shattered under the heavy weight of the glowing contraption, and as an added bonus, the glowing light flickered off. Rey hit the pad again with the cuffs, and to her relief, the door slid open. She darted inside and hid against the wall of the room just as two Stormtroopers marched past.

"Did you hear he already ruined two living quarters?"

"He's wrecked the second already? I might win the pool if he keeps this rate up before we get to the base!"

The laughter of the troopers faded as they turned a corner and headed on their way. Rey let out the breath she had been holding and glanced around the room she had invaded. White Stormtrooper armor met her gaze, and after a moment's jump, she realized it was just that - armor. Black under armor suits hung along one wall, parts of their white armor were piled in different boxes according to pieces, and helmets were stacked in a corner. Apparently a First Order medic ship also included a storage room for troops. She could work with that.

Rey slid the door shut behind her and turned to find several blasters hanging on the wall along with the with what looked like miniature lightsaber hilt roughly the size of her index finger. Curiosity overruled caution, and she picked one up, pressing a small button on the metal contraption. A short red blade slid from the metal, exactly like a small lightsaber knife. _Perfect._ Silently thanking whatever deities that might exist, Rey put the metal hilt into her mouth and brought her cuffs up to the glowing blade. She shut her eyes while sparks flew from the cuffs as the blade cut through the piece holding her wrists together, and she then took the little knife and slowly cut her way through each cuff until they fell to the floor. Rubbing her wrists, she picked up the metal and glanced around the room for a place to stash the broken pieces. She settled for shoving the pieces at the bottom of one of the armor boxes. Now for a disguise.

Rey grabbed a black under suit and slipped it on, before looking at her discarded clothing on the floor. She could not just leave it here; those clothes were the only things she had left of her life on Jakku. Deciding to figure out how to sneak the clothes with her later, she slowly put on the pieces of the Stormtrooper armor, having to take a while to figure out which pieces went where. Most of the pieces were a little too big – apparently she had stumbled into the men's storage room, not the women's – but she did manage to stuff pieces of her old clothes under the armor to fill it out a bit. She had just fitted a helmet over her face when a trooper ran inside, grabbing a blaster from the wall.

"What are you doing in here, soldier? General Hux has ordered us to search the ship. That prisoner girl escaped!"

Rey hesitated for a moment and nodded, lowering her voice as she spoke, "Er – yes, sir." Her attempt at a voice disguise came through the helmet as if she had a cold.

The Stormtrooper beckoned her out the door and ran down the hall. Rey watched him go and took a blaster of her own from the room before heading in the opposite direction. She took a couple of turns to get away from the room with the broken keypad and then slowed as a medic droid glided smoothly out of a nearby room. Rey took a quick glance into the room, took a step, and did a double take before stopping as she recognized who was in the room.

Kylo Ren lay on a sterile white table, his eyes closed as a second medic droid hovered over him. He was stripped down to his pants, the dark cloth covering his legs and contrasting with the paleness of his skin. The wound on his side from Chewie's blaster was bleeding lightly, and a dark bruise had formed around it. The droid was placing a bandage over the wound while another droid worked on the angry red scar on his face by spraying something over it. Rey assumed it was a liquid bandage of some sort; she had even heard of spray-on skin. Both were extremely expensive, and she had never used either before. She vaguely recalled someone at the Jakku market saying spray-on skin was not worth it as it was rather painful, so perhaps that was why Kylo appeared to be unconscious. Whatever the reason, she was glad the former Jedi was not currently part of the hunt for her.

Rey looked away and shook her head, casting away the pity that had crept into her mind. She had spent too long lingering by the door, and she quickly moved down another hall, trying to find indicators that she was heading toward a ship bay. Two troopers jogged past her as she walked, yelling to her, "The general has ordered we lock down all the ships!"

Rey nodded and followed the two, figuring they would be her quickest ticket to find a working speeder. The three entered a small ship bay, and Rey was dismayed to see only one speeder and two TIE fighters, which were already being chained down by other troopers. She was not stupid enough to try to fly one of those out, not alone and not with a possible concussion. Back tracking her steps, Rey searched the far halls of the ship until she stumbled across what she was hoping for: an escape pod. She again smashed the keypad, this time with the blaster, and hurried inside. She closed the door and hit several switches as she collapsed into the pilot's seat, glancing through the door's window to make sure no one had seen her.

Just as she pulled off the hot Stormtrooper helmet, General Hux, flanked by two officers, pounded on the door before lifting a blaster and shooting at the door. "You little bitch! More trouble than you're worth!"

The door dented under the fire, and Rey slammed the button to disengage the pod from the ship. Alarms rang as the pod detached, and Hux dropped the blaster to grab onto the wall as the doors to space closed gently.

Rey quickly engaged the engines, getting as much distance between her and the First Order medical ship as possible, hoping the ship did not have laser canons.

**AN: I don't think some of the tech in this chapter is actually canon in the movies, but dream with me a bit here. I figure the First Order would be trying to one-up the Resistance in tech to hopefully defeat them. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

The little escape pod smashed against the sand and rolled several meters before coming to a stop. Rey groaned and lay against the back of the pilot's chair, cursing her luck and at the same time reveling in the fact she had managed to escape and land alive. Most of her life seemed to be a series of lucky breaks.

It had turned out that the First Order medic ship had indeed been equipped with laser canons. She had gotten a good distance away from the ship before they had been activated, but the equipment the pod had carried for safe and controlled landings had been damaged before she'd been able to activate the meager shields. She had shut off all tracking beacons and pulled something that looked like a compressor off the wires leading to the engines, which allowed her to jump into hyperspace. The little escape pod had not exactly been designed for long-term, high-speed travel, and after a couple of minutes, it had shuddered and slowed, right into the atmosphere of a planet. Rey had managed to use the spent boosters to slow her descent, but obviously she had still crash landed onto a strange planet.

Taking a deep breath, Rey unlocked the safety belt and glanced down at her feet. Part of the main console had dented in during her crash landing and trapped her left ankle against the pilot chair. Rey flinched and tried pulling her ankle out. The crushed metal only pushed further against her leg, making her give a small hiss of pain. _Damn._

She lifted her right ankle and pushed hard on the metal, straining with all her might to get it to move. The metal moved a small bit, but quickly moved back into place before she could make enough room to pull herself out. Frustration boiled up in her. " _Come on, what good were all those years scavenging if you can't even move a little scrap metal?"_ Gritting her teeth, Rey stamped harshly on the metal and shoved with all her might as she pulled her left leg up. The metal suddenly released her, and she went tumbling off the chair and fell to the back of the escape pod, which was now the floor. Her vision spun wildly, and she was forced to use all her concentration to keep herself from retching.

After several minutes, she leaned her head on the nearby wall – or ceiling, she supposed – and took three deep breaths as she took inventory of herself. Nothing seemed to be broken, another lucky break, but her head would had begun bleeding again with the fall. What she needed was rest, but she needed to figure out where she was and if she was in any more immediate danger. No one had fired at the pod, so she took that as a good sign.

Moving slowly, Rey looked around the pod for anything useful. She still had the Stormtrooper blaster as well as the armor and the small lightsaber knife, and she could use pieces of the wrecked pod for make-shift weapons if she needed them. She could defend herself, but that would not mean a thing if she could not find some food and especially water, not to mention something to help her head.

Pressing the black sleeve of the Stormtrooper suit to the bleeding wound, Rey stood and examined the control console, which was now above her. The piece that had been in front of her and that controlled the movements of the pod was completely wrecked, but the part in front of the co-pilot's chair had only sustained a little damage. For the second time since her escape, she silently thanked any deity that might exist, for this part of the console was for communications. She had been with Han long enough to learn the channels the Resistance commonly used, so she began cycling through them, frowning as she got nothing. She had no idea what planet she had landed on, so perhaps she was out of range or the console had sustained more damage than she had initially thought. Immediately, her thanks turned into curses.

Biting her lower lip, Rey glanced at the door, which was still dented from Hux's blaster. Staying in the pod would only lengthen the time she went without food, and she needed to find some while she still had energy left. She ripped a few small pieces of computer technology from the damaged console, figuring if she found a town, she could at least trade for some water. Rey pulled the Stormtrooper helmet back over her head, picked up the blaster, and then kicked the door several times before it burst open.

Sand, not unlike the kind she had dealt with on Jakku, greeted her. She took a few steps outside and glanced around the damaged pod. She could see no signs of anyone else around, and the sand covered the entire landscape. At least she had not damaged any sort of building in her crash landing. She walked a few more meters away, trying to determine where she was. The planet was not Jakku. She knew the sands there, and the grains on this planet were smaller, making it more difficult to walk. Deciding she really had no other choice, Rey abandoned the escape pod to its newfound sandy grave.

Rey dropped to her knees in the sand several hours later, slipping off the Stormtrooper helmet. The blasted thing was hot, but at least it kept out the worst of the sun. Now, the sun – or suns, she corrected herself – were setting low on the horizon. Her legs screamed at the exertion it took to walk in the horrible sand, and her vison was starting to spin again not only from her wound but also from the hunger that was gnawing at her stomach and the thirst that screamed at the back of her throat. On Jakku, she had been used to going without much, but she had still managed to get enough to sustain her through long scavenging days. " _Good work, Rey, you manage to escape the First fucking Order, and now you're going to die of dehydration. In a desert where you've spend your entire life. Smart, Rey, really smart."_

Rey ran an armored hand through the sand in front of her, sighing. " _A little further, and there will be food,"_ she lied to herself. The optimist in her rang out and forced her to her feet, using the butt of the blaster to pull herself up. One foot fell in front of the other, working hard to keep her balance in the fine sand. She used her blaster to help her up a fairly large sand hill and then froze, her parched lips cracking in a grin.

Roughly a thousand steps ahead of her rested a single, stout white building blended against the sand, but there was no doubt it was a building. _Shelter._

If she had not been so exhausted from the long day of walking, she would have sprinted to her newfound hope. As she approached the little building, she slowed, scanning the area for any movement. The building looked like a dome with small hall-like structures coming out from four sides. Seeing no movement around, she approached a doorway, which appeared to be open to the surrounding sand.

"Hello?"

Hearing no answering voice or movement, she stepped inside carefully, ducking her head a little to get through the doorway. She set the Stormtrooper helmet by the entryway and slowly descended down the stairs, holding her blaster tightly for any signs of a threat.

She came into a large courtyard and began to relax her grip on the blaster. It appeared that the little settlement was abandoned. That probably meant any food still present was not edible anymore, but at least she could sleep away from the wind and sand and possibly find a little water. She set the blaster down and crossed the courtyard to open a nearby door when she heard a familiar noise. She started to turn toward it, but a humming green lightsaber blocked her path.

"Now what is a Force-sensitive Stormtrooper doing alone in my home?"


	5. Chapter 5

Rey turned slowly in her spot, her heartrate accelerating wildly. How could she have been so stupid to set the blaster down right away? She never would have gone unarmed in her life at Jakku; the head wound was impairing her judgement. A man only slightly taller than herself held the lightsaber loosely in his hand, the hood of his light brown cloak pushed back. He had a fully grown beard that was flecked with patches of gray, and upon a closer look, the hand holding the lightsaber was made of thin metal. Rey stared at him for several seconds as the man regarded her.

"Well?"

Rey swallowed nervously, and when she spoke, her voice was cracked with thirst. "Luke… Skywalker?"

The man tensed but did not lower the green blade. "What is a lone Stormtrooper doing on Tatooine?"

Rey's gaze dropped to the white armor, and she pulled out a part of her usual clothing that she had stuffed between the pieces and under suit. "I-I'm not a Stormtrooper… I just stole this to get away from the First Order. Are you Luke Skywalker?"

The man blinked at her sudden change of thought but still regarded her warily. "These days, it is unwise for anyone to take someone's identity at face value." He brought his free hand up. "Would you mind if I took a look?"

Rey hesitated, the memories of Kylo Ren's romp through her mind making her wince. "Since you're not answering my question, how do I know you're not a First Order lacky trying to find the map to Skywalker, then? They are the only ones in possession of those crystal things that make lightsabers, and a green one hasn't been seen in years."

The man let out a laugh at this, and this time Rey blinked in surprise. "You make a point. Very well. I could convince you that you saw no one here if I find you're lying to me. My name is Luke. And who are you?"

Rey frowned, considering the man's – Luke's – words. Only someone trained in the Force could do what he said he could, and, she supposed, only one could get into minds like he wanted. Also considering he was still holding the deadly weapon at her, she nodded once at his raised hand. "Alright. I'm Rey."

"Hello, Rey," Luke responded, and she felt a pressure on her mind as he began to look through her mind. She tensed, but the sensation was not unpleasant, unlike her experience with Kylo Ren. It felt as if someone was lightly squeezing her temples instead of clawing their way through her innermost thoughts and invading her privacy. Even as she considered the differences, the pressure let up, and Rey made eye contact with Luke. He was still tense, but his expression looked more trusting.

"You have been around Ben lately."

Rey nodded, even though his statement was not a question. It was a curious observation, but if she remembered from the jumbled visions she had seen when she touched the old lightsaber, Luke and Ben – Kylo Ren – did not exactly get along anymore. She wondered how everything had gone so wrong.

Luke sheathed the green blade, and his eyes found the wound, which was now caked in sand that had blown in her face. "Why don't you get that armor off, and I'll help you clean that wound."

Relieved to see the lightsaber on Luke's belt, she nodded and began pulling off the white pieces of armor as she watched the Jedi. "Do you have any water? I've been walking all day." As she spoke, Luke was already handing her a small metal bottle. "Oh… thank you."

Luke nodded and turned away from her while she took several gulps of the cool liquid. She then busied herself in freeing the armor, still watching him curiously. She had never seen a Jedi, and until recently, she had assumed Luke was just a character in a story. She resisted the urge to reach out and touch him. Silently, she hoped this was actually real and not just something her concussed head was making up back in the First Order ship. The Jedi Master seemed to be lost in thought, and it was not until she had cleared her throat that he turned back to her, seeing her dressed in just the black suit and boots.

"I cannot heal wounds, but I can clean that up and possibly help you get past some of the pain."

Rey nodded in agreement and took a seat, allowing Luke to dab at the wound with a wet cloth. She wanted to give him a little space, but too many questions were bubbling up. "How did you get here? I thought you had left for good? Why are you in this house? What planet is this? I thought you left your lightsaber behind? Why is it gre-"

"I have become unused to the curious minds of young ones, especially those who are Force-sensitive. They are all good questions, but in due time, Rey." His tone was not unkind, but it was weary. Rey chewed her lower lip to keep the questions at bay, and Luke continued to dab at the wound in silence until he deemed it good enough. "My sister tried to convince me to return with stories of a Force-sensitive child who had managed to escape from the First Order with no formal Force training. I refused her, as I did when I left, until she told me what occurred on the Starkiller Base before it was destroyed."

Rey looked away, biting her lip as tears threatened to spill over. Han. She had not known him long, but she had loved his spark, his energy, and his willingness to help. His clear love for Leia. He had been willing to take her on as part of his crew – his family.

Rey wiped a tear from her cheek, her brow furrowing as she processed all of Luke's words. Leia had left to find Luke, but she had been at the Resistance base during their attack on the Starkiller Base. Even with a complete map, Rey assumed it would have taken the general some time to find her brother and convince him to return with her. That meant she had been unconscious on the First Order ship longer than she had initially thought.

Luke continued speaking, his voice soft as he watched her. "Ben always felt a pull to the dark side, but I knew there was light in him. He was my most talented student… until he murdered his fellow Padawans. Even as I fought him, I could sense the light, and I thought if I stayed away, he would find his way back on his own.

"I just saw in your head how you managed to use light best Ben."

Rey started to grin triumphantly until she saw the sharp look Luke gave her, like a schoolteacher would give to a child who was talking during quiet time.

"You were lucky. It won't happen again. Ben was wounded, and I am guessing the full realization of what he had done had not dawned upon him yet. He was still fighting with himself when you cut his face. You need training if we are to bring light to a galaxy under siege from the Dark Side."

Rey could not help the grin this time. She wanted to defeat the murderer who was responsible for Han's death, the man responsible for upsetting her entire life. "When do we start?"

**AN: A slower chapter, but an important one. Don't worry, the action will heat up again soon. Leave a note, lovely people. Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

Luke's starfighter crossed the shield to the ship bay at nearly full speed, scraped against the floor with a loud squeal, and came to a stop with its side resting on its right wing. Two mechanics ran over to the damaged speeder, watching as the hatch opened. Rey immediately jumped out, tripped on the edge of the speeder, and slipped head first to the ground with yell of surprise. The mechanics both fell to break her fall. Luke descended much more gracefully, using the Force to help him drop lightly to the ground.

Luke had taken a starfighter to visit his childhood home, and it had been the only means of getting off Tatooine. Unfortunately, speeders were really only meant for one person, so Rey had needed to squish basically on top of the Jedi, making the trip back to the Resistance base uncomfortable. It did not help that they had run into enemy fire the moment they left hyperspace. Luke had not been able to maneuver effectively with Rey's slim body covering half of the defense controls, hence the unconventional landing. They had only gotten through to the Resistance ship because of R2-D2's expert use of the fighter's blaster cannon, and Luke's skill as a pilot.

The Resistance ship they had flown into shuddered as a wave of TIE fighter blasts passed over it. Luke frowned up at his starfighter as Rey staggered to her feet, grinning. It had been a close call, but she had to admit flying with the Jedi was thrilling. Noticing Luke's expression, she glanced up at the damaged speeder and then glanced around at the other fighter ships the Resistance had available. Two pilots were readying X-Wings to join the battle, and three mechanics were working quickly to repair a third that had smoke rising from its laser cannons. One other starfighter sat dormant. Rey took a step toward it, intending to join the fight, but stopped as Luke called her name.

The Jedi Master motioned for Rey to follow him as he headed to a side door. "Let's see where Leia wants us before we just barrel out there." Rey longingly looked at the speeder and sighed before following Luke. She supposed if she was going to be an apprentice to Luke soon, she had better not make him doubt that she could follow instructions. The two climbed up some stairs and down a long hall to the command deck of the ship.

A mess of scrap metal, green and red lasers, and fighters greeted them through the huge window panels lining the deck. Leia stood in the middle, giving commands to five other Resistance members sitting at consoles. Even with only six people, the room was full of chaotic noise as communications from pilots came in, and the console operators spoke quickly to the general. Everyone braced themselves as red blasts hit the shields around the deck, and Rey winced as part of the ship burst into flames. A First Order Star Destroyer was silhouetted a distance away by a sun.

"Leia."

The general turned at the sound of her brother's voice, and her stern expression softened as she saw him standing next to Rey. "You're both late."

Luke opened his mouth to respond, but Leia turned away as a slight, young woman with blonde hair addressed her. "General, Blue Squadron has managed to break through some of the shields. Commander Dameron is pulling them to out to make repairs, and Green Squadron will continue to make fly-by attacks until they return."

Leia nodded once to the member. "Tell them they will be met with some mechanics, Kaydel." The general turned back to the two newcomers. "Rey, you know engines. Can you go help make the repairs? We need as many hands as we can get."

Rey nodded with a smile and left the command room to return to the ship bay. She would prefer to actually be part of the fight, but at least she was allowed to help. Running out into the bay, she watched as four X-Wings sped inside, landing a little more smoothly than she and Luke had. Poe jumped out from the first fighter and immediately began repairing his damaged mag-pulse launcher. The other pilots in the squadron began fixing their own fighters' weapons.

Rey moved to the fighter that looked the most damaged and examined the shield mechanism. The blast that had caused the damage had been a direct hit. She thought this was odd as the main controller for this was fairly small in comparison to the rest of fighter, but she grabbed a replacement piece and salvaged what parts she could – for scavenger habits die hard. Since she still had shield parts, she checked the next ship's mechanism. This one had been directly hit as well. Once was strange, but twice? Her eyes narrowed, and she ran to the third fighter. Direct hit. The fourth had also been directly damaged. As she repaired the one on Poe's fighter, she called him over.

"Every one of the shield mechanisms were taken out as a direct shot. I think something or someone is doing something."

Poe's eyes widened in understanding. "That's why we took so much damage right away."

"It's Ben." Luke's voice came from behind her. "I sensed the Dark Side of the Force as we were being shot at on our way in. He's guiding the blasts to take out the most important parts of the fighters."

Poe's response was covered by a cry of pain. One of the squadron's pilots had fallen to her knees, holding her side. The commander ran to her. "Jessika!"

Rey approached at a slower pace, looking up at the fighter Blue Three. A hole had been blasted open in the left side, leaving the interior wall dented and the wires sparking. Jessika looked up at Poe, her mouth set in anger and determination. Blood was staining the left side of her uniform. "The bastards shot through my fighter! Get me one of the spare X-Wings! I can get them back."

Poe shook his head, crossing his arms. "Get yourself to the infirmary. You'll be a risk to the squad if you go back out there like that." Jessika started to protest, but Poe glared at her until she sighed in resignation and allowed one of the mechanics to help her out of the ship bay. Rey felt a pang of sympathy for the pilot. She would want the same thing, and nothing was as frustrating as being sidelined. The wound she still sported on her temple was a testament to that. Luke had helped her push back the pain, so she could think clearly, but the concussion she'd once sustained on Jakku had forced her to remain close to her homestead.

The commander sighed and looked to the other two members of his squad, his jaw clenching in anger at what had happened to his friend. "Why don't we go make Jessika proud, huh?" The other pilots yelled in agreement and began climbing back into their fighters. Poe turned to Rey as he pulled his helmet back on. "We're going to need another pilot to complete the squadron. You in?"

()()()()()

Rey's borrowed X-Wing flew at the back of Blue Squadron's V-formation, shooting at TIE fighters as they approached. The squad was taking an indirect, circular route around the back of the Resistance ship since the space between the two large ships was an obstacle course of broken ships and laser cannon blasts. The squadron moved as one, and Rey found herself grinning despite the seriousness of the situation. The other pilots were incredible, and Poe's strategies for taking down oncoming enemy fighters was nothing short of brilliant.

"We'll take a wide arc at full speed once we've rounded the main ship," Poe's voice sounded from the comm in her helmet. "Give that Star Destroyer as much as you can when we pass by."

"Copy that," the other squad members – Ello and Temmin – responded.

The five fighters each banked as they turned around the Resistance's ship and shot out in an arc around the main battle space. Five droid Starfighters broke away from the main fight, their laser cannons sending red blasts toward the Resistance fighters.

"BB-3, shields to full power," Rey commanded as she followed the other fighters in her squad. The black and blue unit gave a beep of acknowledgement, and the shields around her fighter strengthened to ward off the oncoming attacks.

"Ello, Rey, take them out," Poe ordered. Rey turned the blaster cannon and began an onslaught of blasts along with the Blue Four, giving a yell of triumph as the droids burst into flames several minutes later. The squad was nearing the Star Destroyer, and the huge ship's laser cannons rotated toward them.

"Green Squadron's giving us some cover," Poe's voice was muffled with static over their comm link. A few moments later, four other X-Wings flew between Rey's squad and the Star Destroyer's fire, all of their cannons firing at full power toward the Star Destroyer's weapons. "The target is coming up. Get ready!" The Blue Squadron broke away from Green and fired their own cannons at the First Order's command deck.

Rey's fighter shuddered as blast got through her shields. BB-3's beeping came through her communication link. _Shit._ The shielding mechanism was destroyed. Rey swore as the fighter took more damage and then watched as Ello's fighter took a similar hit.

"BB-3, keeping firing," she ordered, watching as blasts came toward the other two members of the squad. _No, no, no, we won't get out of here if their shields are taken out, too…_ She concentrated on the blasts, willing them with all her might to miss her fellow fighters. The blasts just skimmed past Poe's and Temmin's X-Wings fighters just as a series of red blasts took off both her own left wings.


	7. Chapter 7

Rey remembered the fighter spinning out of control, and the next thing she knew, she was waking up in an infirmary bed. A dark figure sat in a chair to her right, and she let out a gasp.

"Relax. It's just me," Luke's voice was friendly in contrast to the deep voice of Kylo Ren that she had been expecting.

Rey began to sit up, but pain blossomed from her left side, causing her to let out a small cry of pain. "I didn't save anyone… I got a fighter destroyed, that's all… I remember the wings getting blasted to pieces."

"You sustained a similar injury to Jessika Pava." The Jedi's hand gently pressed her shoulder back down. "The medic droids stopped the bleeding, but there are only two, and others are more injured than you."

Rey cast her gaze around the infirmary. Seven pilots occupied beds around her, and she saw a few more beds with sheets covering a poor soul's head. Her chest clenched, and she looked up a Luke, horror etched over her face. "Where are we? What happened?"

"We're at the base on D'Qar," Luke responded softly. His expression sorrowful, and he took several minutes before he continued. "After your fighter was damaged, Commander Dameron attached it to a line on his and got you close our ship. Ello Asty assisted you back into the bay, and Dameron went back for Temmin Waxley…"

The Jedi Master's soft voice broke off for a moment, and his left hand fiddled with the lightsaber hilt at his hip. "The Green Squadron was covering Waxley since his shields were starting to fail, and I went out in a starfighter to assist the Yellow Squadron.

"Yellow Squad and I were able to damage the Star Destroyer beyond repair, but Green… Three of their four pilots were killed helping the rest of Blue, and we believe Dameron and Waxley were taken hostage," Luke paused with a sigh, and his hand left the lightsaber hilt. "We had to evacuate our own ship as well and fly what vessels we could back here."

Rey clutched at the white blanket around her, chewing her lower lip as guilt gnawed at her insides. If she had not agreed to fly with Poe and had insisted that Luke – who clearly a better pilot – go instead, her fighter probably would not have been destroyed. The Blue Squadron would have all made it back in one piece, and the Green Squadron would not have needed to cover them and would likely be alive. "It's… all my fault…"

Luke looked back up at Rey at her words, his eyes wide in surprise. "Oh? And were you the one who shot the blasts at Green Squadron? Were you the one who destroyed our ship?"

"No, but…"

"But nothing, Rey. Last I checked you, who are untrained, managed to use the Force to save Dameron and Waxley's fighters from being completely obliterated. You saved their lives, and Green Squadron gave theirs to give Yellow and I a chance to take down that Star Destroyer," Luke said firmly and then added, " _This is not your fault._ "

Rey looked away from the Jedi Master, her thoughts still rolling with guilt and shame at having lost a precious ship and costing lives. "All right…"

Luke watched Rey carefully, and she could tell he did not believe she had accepted his words. After a moment, the Jedi sighed and stood, looking down at the former scavenger. "Get some rest."

()()()()()

One of the medic droids stopped by Rey's bed, waking her up as it began to properly seal her wound. It gave her a shot of painkillers. Rey looked away as the droid began stitching up the wound on her side, feeling nothing as the painkiller shot did its job. Nearly an hour later, the droid began moving to another resident of the infirmary. "You are free to go, miss."

Rey jumped out of the bed and left the infirmary. She was still wearing the black Stormtrooper under suit, although a hole had been cut out of the side where her wound was. She wandered the dark corridors, unsure of where to go. Rey assumed she would stumble across someone who would help her out eventually.

She poked her head inside several empty rooms that were meant to be living quarters, but judging by the dust that had formed, they had not been used in some time. She continued down a hall and entered a large circular room with couches, chairs, and a couple of tables for Holo-Chess. A few Resistance members were milling around talking, and Rey was making her way to a couch when something metal bumped against her leg.

"Rey!"

Rey looked down in surprise, seeing a dark man sitting in a hover chair. _Finn._

"You're alive! No one told me what happened to you!" Rey exclaimed, giving her friend hug.

The two pulled away, and Rey sat on a nearby couch as Finn rolled his eyes. "Of course they didn't. The ex-Stormtrooper with the bad back isn't really on the top of their priority list. I'm just glad you managed to escape Ren!"

Rey nodded and watched Finn carefully. "How did you get here? Kylo Ren hurt you pretty badly…"

Finn looked away for a moment, shrugging with a wince. "Chewie found me as the Starkiller was imploding. He looked for you, but he had to get off before we both died. We guessed that Ren captured you, but we had no way of finding where you were. That bastard cut open my back, and the med droids have been doing their best, but… they don't know if I'll walk again…" Rey forced down a look of pity for her friend. Her legs were the defining part of her independence, and she did not know what she would be able to cope if she was in Finn's place.

Finn frowned as he watched his friend, and Rey got the feeling he did not want to talk about himself anymore. "Tell me what happened to you since the Starkiller Base."

The two sat talking for hours over several games of Holo-Chess. Finn, who had played the game growing up as a Stormtrooper, had to teach Rey how to play. By the start of their fourth game and three brutal defeats by Finn, she was starting to get the hang of the rules. As they played, Rey told her friend how she had escaped. "And Ren didn't do anything to you?"

Rey shrugged and shook her head. "He tried to get the map out of my head, but he got so angry that I'm pretty sure he destroyed his quarters."

Finn snorted in amusement, taking a drink of his fizzpop. "The Stormtroopers had continuous pools running for how many rooms he would destroy in one mission. I was the reigning champion for guessing the amount of refreshers he'd damage."

Rey had a sudden image of Kylo Ren chopping up a toilet with his menacing lightsaber and burst into laughter loud enough to make the other Resistance members glance over at them. She took a sip of her own drink – bubblepop, it was called – to stifle her laughter. On Jakku, she only ever could afford water. She liked the way the drink tickled her tongue as she drank.

A stout, yellow alien with long arms waved at her from the game board as she yawned loudly. Finn sighed and shut off the game; the alien characters flickering off. "I can help you find Vober Dand. He assigns living quarters so you can get some rest."

Rey had to admit she was tired, especially with the healing wounds on her side and left temple. Nodding, she stood and followed Finn's hovering chair out of the room and down a few hallways. They passed the main command room, and Rey froze as she heard several familiar voices, including one she had hoped she would not hear for a long while.

She entered the room slowly, hearing Finn call her name before coming up behind her. General Leia, Luke, and several other officers of the Resistance stood around the middle of the room where they were communicating with a hologram of Kylo Ren.

The former Jedi was dressed in his long attire complete with his black mask and hood, not that the blue hologram showed the color. Leia looked heartbroken as she watched her son's hologram form, and Luke had an arm around her shoulders. "You can still come back, Ben… Please, come home."

Kylo's mask turned to the general, his amplified voice cold. "I have told you before, Princess Leia, that I am no longer your son. Now, stop talking."

Luke's eyes narrowed at the hologram, and Major Caluan Ematt stepped forward to take over the communications. "You said something about a cease-fire?"

Kylo Ren turned to the major, ignoring his mother as Luke pulled her from the room. "I grant that you fought well in our last encounter, but I know your forces are weakened. We propose a three month period of non-aggression."

Ematt frowned at this, watching Kylo carefully even though he could not read his expression through the mask. "May I ask why?"

Kylo's left gloved hand went to the lightsaber hilt that glinted on his hip. "Would you prefer we attack your base tomorrow? Our numbers far exceed your own, and you would be lying to say that in your current state, you could repel us." He raised his right hand as several of the officers began to speak in contradiction, and Ematt called for them to quiet. "You know I am correct. You can imagine the devastation another Star Destroyer could wreck upon your base, and I assure you, we have several more. I suggest you use the time wisely by preparing for the Supreme Leader's rule instead of continuing your foolish fight."

Ematt frowned at the words and crossed his arms over his chest, his jaw tight as he called for the officers to quiet. Rey could see his mind reeling. "We also need full control of Dermos."

Kylo's hand tightened on his lightsaber hilt, his body vibrating slightly as Rey watched him suppress his famous temper. "You spent almost all of your resources driving us away from there. Are you prepared to lose everything – your supplies, your loved ones, your lives – because you cannot admit that you are outnumbered, outgunned, and outclassed. You are all but beaten, major. This is a mercy. We will keep our base on Dermos."

Ematt sighed and glanced at his fellow officers before looking back up at the hologram. "We will need more time to – ah – _prepare._ "

Kylo inclined his head. "That could be arranged, but I would require something to ensure you will not pull off the guerilla tactics you seem so fond of."

"Such as?" Ematt looked tense as he watched the gloved hand leave the lightsaber hilt.

Kylo Ren's right hand clasped his left wrist over his stomach. "I require a hostage, major."

Ematt scowled outright at this. "If you need a hostage, then so do we."

"I was thinking more of an… exchange." Kylo's hand moved out of the hologram for a moment before returning with the forms of Poe Dameron and Temmin Waxley. "I propose that you get these two _pilots_ back in exchange for a hostage."

Jessika Pava immediately stepped forward, her eyes wide as she saw her squad members. The two men had clearly seen better days; both their wrists were bound as Rey's once had been, and both were sporting visible wounds on their faces. "Sir, I volunteer."

Kylo Ren's masked face turned to the injured pilot, and his tone was cruel through the mask as he addressed her, "I did not ask for _you_." Ematt glared up at the hologram as another officer pulled Jessika away before she could begin screaming at the former Jedi. "Two skilled pilots for one… mediocre one is not a valuable trade. I need someone far more valuable."

Ematt watched the hologram wearily. Kylo Ren knew that Luke was with the Resistance now, and Rey could see the officer's fear of the answer even before he asked the question. "Then who do you want?"

The dark mask raised to look over the major's head, and Rey could feel Kylo Ren's eyes on her even through the mask. Her chest tightened.

"Rey."

**AN: Heavily inspired by World Under Siege written by lone on FF.net. This chapter was difficult to write, but I am happy with how it turned out. Please leave a note, and thank you for reading.**


	8. Chapter 8

Protests sounded throughout the room as every officer began talking at once. Rey heard small pieces of arguments, cussing, and one officer actually banged on a table with his fist several times in fury. They were all defending her, as they probably would do for any Resistance member, but Rey remained frozen near the door, her eyes wide as she watched the hologram flicker. She was by no means a war strategist, but Kylo Ren's demand was logical. The Resistance would be gaining back two valuable members who clearly had been under some torture. As a political hostage, she would – hopefully – be immune to such torture. Rey did not have any special training apart from just a few things Luke had told her about the Force, and in the six months she would be away, Luke would not be able to train her while Kylo could continue to improve his own skills. Besides, the only thing she had done for the Resistance was destroy one of their X-Wing fighters. This way, the Resistance would still have Luke, a Jedi Master, to help them.

"I require a response, Major Ematt," Kylo Ren's deep voice cut over the chaos that had burst out in the room. He had remained in the same stance while the Resistance officers had all spoken up, taking in their jumbled voices in with a surprising calm. Rey assumed their arguments with each other and the major was confirmation to the former Jedi that the Resistance had no place in the galaxy if their officers could not even speak in a civilized way.

Ematt called for everyone to leave the room, and another officer quickly cleared the room of everyone apart from the major, Rey, and Finn in his hover chair. Ematt's eyes locked onto hers as the last few officers left the room. His expression said everything Rey was thinking: the Resistance desperately needed the time to recover and build. She would be leaving Finn just after they had reunited, but she could see no way out of the situation if the Resistance still wanted a chance to overthrow the First Order. Her fists clenched and unclenched, and she gave the major a small nod.

Major Ematt turned back to the hologram, his arms crossed as he spoke, "I will need to confer with General Leia and Master Luke."

The dark mask focused back upon the officer. Rey noticed his grip on his left wrist tightened at the mention of his mother, and his tone grew more impatient with each word. "I do not believe I gave you the luxury of time. Accept my offer now, or expect a strike by morning."

Ematt sucked in a breath and his fingers tapped on his arm nervously. He spoke slowly as he chose his words, "If I do agree to this, what keeps you from attacking us, Ren?"

Kylo's left hand moved back to his lightsaber hilt. "Why, I give you my word as a Knight."

Ematt covered a snort of indignation with a very fake cough. "I'm sure you will understand that your word as a Knight of Ren was marred when you murdered Master Luke's students."

The hologram of the former Jedi flickered again as Kylo gave a low chuckle. "Then what would give you peace of mind?"

Ematt paused in surprise at the deep laugh. His entire body was tense, and Rey figured he had been expecting an argument. "Communication. Rey needs to be able to contact us to ensure that she is being treated respectfully as a hostage."

Kylo Ren was silent for a moment, and Rey was just beginning to think the hologram had malfunctioned when he gave a swift nod. "Agreed. She will be allowed to communicate every three days with one designated person under supervision for ten minutes."

Rey's muscles were so tense that she was beginning to get tired. She had not spoken up due to her inexperience in political matters, and the conversation was indeed a delicate dance of politics.

Ematt turned to look at her. The dark mask followed his gaze. "Rey, do you consent to these terms?"

Rey took several moments to respond, and she only found the courage to speak when Finn's hand squeezed hers reassuringly. "Y-Yes, I agree."

The Knight of Ren spoke before Major Ematt could. "Good. We will meet midday tomorrow on Dermos for the exchange." The hologram flickered off as Ematt agreed.

Rey leaned against Finn's chair, her hands trembling nervously. In less than 12 hours, she would be back in the hands of the First Order. Her friend gazed up at her worriedly. "Come on. You can sleep in my quarters tonight. It's bigger because of the whole chair thing." Rey nodded and let Finn's hover chair lead her out of the room.

Rey walked in silence behind Finn, who kept glancing back at her as if he was worried she was going to fall. She was so dazed at the sudden turn of events that she was surprised that she made it down the few hallways to Finn's quarters without falling flat on her face. The dark metal door to his living space slid open with a creek, and she stepped inside behind the hovering chair. His room was about twice the size of the empty quarters she had seen earlier. A wide door leading to the refresher was to her left, and a small bed rested near it. A little couch on the right stood next to a small table, but the rest of the room was open and bare. Rey supposed Finn had not had much of a chance to collect many personal items since his escape from the First Order, much like her.

She immediately collapsed onto the couch, placing her head in her hands. Finn hovered over to her, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You can take the bed, Rey. Please."

Rey looked up at him with a small smile and was about to refuse when she saw his expression. He was just as worried, if not more, than she was. He had, after all, grown up around the First Order. He knew better than her what the organization was capable of. She would consider running away if the lives of every Resistance member were not at stake. She stood slowly and nodded, plopping herself onto the bed and pulling her knees to her chest.

Finn eyed her for several minutes and then maneuvered his chair over to the small table next to the couch and pulled it out between them. "Let's play sabacc to get your mind off all this."

Just like holo-chess, Finn needed to teach Rey how to play. Unlike holo-chess, Rey was a natural and quickly began beating the ex-Stormtrooper at the card game. The two talked late into the night about everything they could think of, except for what they had witnessed in the command room. Finn mentioned his Stormtrooper company and the other members, and some light-hearted stories of their training. When he was younger, his company played many strategy games together, which was why he was so good at holo-chess. In return, Rey told him of growing up on Jakku.

"And he threw it down at my feet! I picked it up, shoved it into his face, and just started rambling off all these specs about it so fast that he couldn't understand what I saying."

"Was it really that advanced?"

"Not at all! I just kept saying random things that sounded impressive until he gave me an entire portion just to get rid of me!"

They both fell into fits of laughter. "He got a little more wary of me after that once he found out the thing was worthless, but at least I got the food."

Finn chuckled and laid down his hand of cards. "Beat that." Rey grinned and pressed three cards down on the table – a 0, 2, and 3. Finn's jaw dropped as he accepted his defeat. "The Idiot's Array! How in the stars do you keep winning?"

Rey laughed and shrugged as she began shuffling the cards again. She continued to win until they both fell asleep late into the night.

()()()()

Rey woke early the next morning and rolled over, sinking further into the comfortable bed. She grinned as she heard Finn's snores from the couch before sitting up in the bed as the thought of what was coming hit her. She stood and slipped out of the room as quietly as she could so as to not wake her friend. She did not know where she was going, but she needed to _move_.

She wandered the silent halls of the Resistance base for a while, telling herself over and over that things would be fine. She eventually found her way to the mess hall and entered it slowly, her growling stomach urging her on. She realized she had not eaten anything since finding Luke on Tatooine.

The Jedi Master himself sat alone in the big room, stirring a cup of tea absentmindedly. He did not look up as she approached. "You're anxious."

Rey took a seat across from him, studying his face as he finally met hers. He looked exhausted. "Wouldn't you be?"

Luke inclined his head with a sigh. "There is so much you need to know before you leave… but time restrains us." He took a sip of his tea. "I have no doubt that Ben will try to sway you toward the Dark Side during your time with him." Rey bit her lower lip and nodded. She had expected as much. Luke watched her carefully before continuing. "But you are prepared to give up the chance of settling here to ensure the safety of everyone in the Resistance, not to mention you jumped into action to help the Blue Squadron during the battle. You see, the Light Side is about using your abilities to help others without regard for any reward or personal gain.

"The Dark Side embraces anger, fear, and hatred. It is easy to forget yourself when these emotions arise and use the Force for your needs. You align strongly with the Light. Do not forget that, Rey."

()()()()

Rey watched as the dark command ship descended and touched lightly to the ground, its wings lifting up at sharp angles. She stood next to Major Ematt and Finn in his hover chair, wearing the clothes she had worn on Jakku. One of the pilots had recovered them on the floor of the damaged Starfighter she and Luke had flown from Tatooine before the ship had been destroyed in the battle.

Ello and Jessika, the two members of the Blue Squadron, stood nearby, their hands clutching small blasters while the Yellow Squadron pilots each were near their X-Wings, ready to take off should the First Order go against their word and begin another fight. Luke remained inside the Millennium Falcon along with Chewie. The Jedi Master had insisted Leia say behind on D'Qar; she was too valuable to the Resistance and its morale to put herself at risk during the exchange. Rey also had a sneaking suspicion the former Jedi was worried about what his sister would do if she saw her son.

A ramp lowered from the black ship, and Kylo Ren stepped off, flanked by four Stormtroopers. The troopers each held the arms of their prisoners and had blasters within reach on their hips. Rey watched the ramp closely, expecting to see a greater show of force from the First Order, but no one else descended the black metal. She decided that Kylo Ren must believe he was enough of a threat, and he probably was.

The former Jedi nodded to the two Stormtroopers on his left, and they pulled Temmin forward, allowing Ello and Jessika to take him from their hands. Ello pulled Temmin's arm over his shoulders and brought him to the Millennium Falcon that rested a small distance behind their group.

"You may have the other once Rey is in our hands," Kylo spoke evenly through the mask. Finn's hand squeezed Rey's arm, and she took a step forward, clutching the small holocommunicator in her hands. Kylo's voice rang out again, his tone much more threatening as he watched her. "I see you brought the traitor along. I am glad to see it's no longer in any condition to fight."

Rey hesitated as the Knight of Ren referred to her friend as if he were nothing more than an object, but before she could say anything, Poe shouted from the hands of the Stormtroopers holding him. "Finn's twice the man you are, you piece of shit!"

Kylo Ren swiftly turned, his right hand raising as he began choking Poe with the Force. Jessika yelled from behind Rey and tried to bring her blaster up. She froze mid-lift as Kylo raised his other hand. Rey watched with horror for a moment as Poe struggled for air and then yelled, "Stop! This was supposed to start our non-aggression period! I will come with you, just stop…"

The two Stormtroopers who had been holding Temmin had their blasters raised. Kylo's mask turned toward her again, and slowly, Poe began gasping for air as Jessika fell to her knees. Before he could change his mind again, Rey walked quickly over to Kylo and passed by him to make sure the pilot was all right. She looked back to the masked form, her mouth set in determination. "Let him go as per our agreement."

At Kylo's brief nod, the Stormtroopers let go of Poe. He dropped to the ground, and Jessika ran over to him, helping him walk back to the Resistance.

Kylo Ren looked back at the group, his voice full of contempt through the mask. "Any more aggression in the next six months will result in swift punishment of my hostage, and the retaliation of the full force of the First Order."

He put a gloved hand on Rey's upper back and led her onboard his ship. She looked back at Finn one last time as the ramp closed.

**AN: As always, I thank you for your wonderful support. You all are the best. Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

The ship lurched as it took off, and Kylo Ren led Rey further inside with his hand still on her back. The command ship featured one fairly large room with small seats lining the sides. A door in the back led to what Rey assumed was the pilot's room. Six other Stormtroopers stood at attention in a formation of two columns, and the four that had gone to the exchange with Kylo joined them. Another trooper in silver armor stood off to the side. The voice was distinctly female as she addressed the Knight of Ren. "Sir, the pilots say the trip will take just over an hour."

Rey shrugged Kylo's hand off her back and moved to sit down on one of the chairs, fiddling with the holocommunicator for something to do. The former Jedi moved toward her, holding out a gloved hand. "Your communicator, Rey."

Rey frowned up at him, wishing he would take off his helmet for once so that she could read his expression. "Why do you want it?"

"I cannot have you contacting your Resistance friends if you happen to find some useful information. I will hold onto it for your check-ins." His hand remained open, and Rey sighed before placing the round device into his palm. She was surprised that he had not just used the Force to take it from her.

His hand disappeared inside his cloak to presumably place the communicator in his pocket, and his lightsaber hilt glinted in the dim lighting. She watched it curiously as he took a seat across from her. Luke had not had time to tell her anything about the weapons, and she wanted to learn more about them since she had successfully used one on the Starkiller Base. She did not ask Kylo, however, as she wanted as little interaction with her new captor as possible.

They sat – or stood in the Stormtroopers' case – in silence for nearly a half hour with Rey fiddling with her Jakku clothes. She was just starting to examine the ceiling when the ship shuddered out of hyperspace and suddenly banked hard to one side. Rey tipped out of her seat, and the Stormtroopers stumbled to the side in surprise. Kylo Ren managed to catch himself with the Force and opened the door to the pilot's room, his boots pounding against the metal as he walked. Rey looked up from her new spot on the floor, seeing the ship's twin laser cannons firing at a small ship through the windows. "What's going on?"

One of the pilots addressed Kylo, ignoring Rey's question. "It's not a Resistance ship, sir."

Kylo's hand fingered his lightsaber as if he wanted nothing more than to jump across space and cut the attacking ship in half. "Those blasted pirates again. They think capturing me will get them a hefty ransom from the First Order. Get close to them." The ship surged forward, and his gloved hand rose. The red cannon blasts began shifting upwards, unnaturally angling into the underside of the ship. The pirate ship fired back as its shields flickered off. The pilot turned the ship on its side to avoid the enemy fire.

The co-pilot examined a screen in front of him, pressing a few buttons. "Their shields are down, sir. Scans show a crew of thirty."

The raised hand turned so that Kylo's palm was perpendicular to the ground, and the rest of the Knight's body was completely still as he focused upon the Force. Rey felt a curious pressure in the air around her, similar to when Kylo had invaded her mind. The blasts from the command ship's cannons easily hit their targets and destroyed the cannons on the pirate ship.

"We will need to meet with a larger vessel to capture them, sir."

Kylo turned away from the pilot, his tone almost bored through the mask. "They are only a nuisance. Destroy them."

The two pilots complied. Rey watched with wide eyes as the pirate ship went down in flames under the blasts of their cannons. She stood as the ship took off into hyperspace once again, fury bubbling up inside her like the fizzy drink Finn had introduced her to at the Resistance base. "You just murdered thirty people! They were only trying to make a living; you could have let them live! They probably had families, childre-"

She was cut off as the Force enveloped her, freezing her in place with her mouth open. Rey tried pushing back with her mind as Kylo stalked over to her, his hand raised again. "Those _pirates_ would have tried to kill everyone on this ship for I certainly would not have gone with them willingly. As much power as you think you possess, you would not be able to hold off fifteen trained pirates without a weapon. You would likely be dead or captured, and your little Resistance friends would go to war for you. Are you telling me you would have risked them in favor of thirty men you have never met?"

The Force dropped her to the ground, and he stood over her, his dark figure imposing as his mask stared lifelessly down at her. Rey looked up at him, her jaw set. She would not have someone who practiced the Dark Side give her a lecture on morals. "Then are you saying you are not strong enough to fight off thirty people with that lightsaber you seem so fond of?"

She felt the pressure envelop her again, and this time it began to hurt. He knelt down next to her, his voice low and dangerous through the mask. "I am saying I could not fight them with my full power because I would need to be protecting a _weakling_ girl who could not defend herself. Those filth would not hesitate to steal you and sell you in the far reaches of the galaxy." He stood, but the Force remained around her head. "I think you need to rest and cool off before we arrive." His power forced her to fall unconscious before she could bite back her scathing retort.

()()()()

She woke in a spacious bed and sat up as she heard movement to left. Before she could see what made the noise, she let out a small gasp. The room she was in large, about the size Finn's quarters had been, but that was where the comparisons stopped. Sunlight flowed through white curtains that hung over wide windows. The covers she was under were a dark green, the color of thick grass. A white vanity sat to her right with a circular mirror, and next to it the door to a large refresher was open. She turned back to her left as she heard someone clear their throat.

A young woman with orange-red skin stood near her bed, smiling tentatively down at her. Her face was framed by white and blue striped head tails that connected to cone-like horns. Rey had seen a few of her species at the Jakku market once before, and she vaguely recalled the woman was a Togruta. Her horns were fairly small and her head tails fell only a small way past her shoulders, indicating that she was probably a young adult. White pigments accented her face as a diamond on her forehead, and two thick lines started from the top of her nose, arced over her deep blue eyes, and ended in graceful sweeps down her cheekbones that tapered into a swirl. Her thin body was clad in loose-fitting black pants and a black, long sleeve shirt that left her shoulders bare.

The Togruta's voice was soft with a musical lilt as she spoke. "Rey? I am Asarla Tano. Lord Ren has assigned me to be your assistant during your stay here."

Rey raised an eyebrow as she stood, studying the woman. "Assistant? But I am a hostage."

Asarla's laugh was as melodic as her voice. "A _political_ hostage. Since it is assured that you will not escape, Lord Ren has made arrangements for you to be comfortable."

Rey nodded once, not quite believing what her alleged assistant said. "Right... So I am assuming I can get something to eat?"

The Togruta gave a small nod, a smile gracing her dark lips. "Of course, miss. Do you wish to change? Lord Ren has provided some clothing for you."

Rey looked down at her sun-beaten clothes from Jakku. They were dirty and old, but they were hers. She had gone through a lot in the clothes and sand-worn boots. She shook her head, deciding she wanted to accept as little as possible from Kylo Ren. "No. I will wear this."

Asarla gave a small nod and turned, leading her out into a short hall that opened into a spacious – well, Rey was not sure what to call the room. White columns gleamed down a row to her left, casting shadows that tall windows created as they brought in sunlight. A table to her right displayed a hologram that shifted to views of various planets and stars. Another table a small distance down held more food than she had ever seen.

Her stomach growled impatiently as she saw the food, and she took several steps toward it, eager to taste something other than the rationed bread she was used to on Jakku. Rey stopped halfway to the table as an all-too familiar figure approached her from a nearby door.

Kylo – or Lord Ren, as Asarla referred to him – had abandoned his usual battle attire. He had removed his helmet, revealing the scar on the right side of his face. It made significant progress in healing, and it now looked like a dark bolt of lightning had been carved across his face. Rey thought it made him look more intimidating than the mask ever had. He wore black, loose-fitting pants similar to what Asarla had on. Knee-high boots fitted over the pants, and a tucked in, deep red shirt was under a form-fitted black jacket. His lightsaber hung at his hip as usual. His demeanor was different somehow, and Rey took several moments to place her finger on what exactly it was. _Relaxed._ He was not tense as she had always seen him, but rather comfortable in his surroundings.

He crossed the distance between them swiftly as she watched him. She did not think it was fair that he looked so _good._ Suddenly, she felt self-conscious in her dirty Jakku clothing.

"Rey. Welcome to my home." Even his rich voice had less of a bite to it than usual.

Rey looked surprised at this, glancing around at the spacious room. The warm, welcoming light was not what she would have expected of Kylo Ren's home. For some reason, she had imagined he would have chosen to live in a dark cave somewhere while he obsessed over the Dark Side and probably Darth Vader. "Your… home. I thought you lived on the First Order's ships?"

He shrugged and beckoned her toward the table of food. "Generally, yes. The Supreme Leader provided me with this house for when I am not on assignments." She followed him to the table more because of her hunger than because of his motion. "You are to remain here for your time with us."

Rey took a seat across from him and picked up the nearest piece of yellow fruit, taking a bite of it. Its flavor exploded in her mouth as he watched her. "I think you'll find everything you will need is here. I do ask that you not venture out into the city without Ms. Tano to accompany you." Asarla stood near the table, giving a small nod.

Rey took another bite of the fruit, taking a moment to swallow it before answering. "Why? Do I need to be watched? Asarla said there really isn't a chance for me to escape, considering I am a willing hostage."

Kylo's dark eyes watched her intently. Rey noticed he made no move to eat the food in front of him. "It is more for your safety. The city is mostly safe, but there are of course criminals that occasionally cause trouble. They know that attacking anyone under my protection results in swift punishment." Rey did not want to think of what kind of punishment he spoke of.

She finished the fruit as a silver droid marched up to the table. "Sir, General Hux is waiting to speak with you on the hologram."

Kylo nodded and stood, glancing back at Rey. "Ms. Tano can help you find what you need. I trust you will stay out of trouble." He followed the droid to the door he had come out of and turned back to her briefly before he entered it. "And change your clothes. I do not care for such… dirt in my home."

**AN: And a slightly different side of Kylo comes out. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!**


	10. Chapter 10

"I really think you should try on something else, Miss Rey. Lord Ren has a temper," Asarla said timidly from behind Rey. She smiled at her assistant through the mirror as she tied the second bob into her hair.

"He can't hurt me, remember? I'm speaking with Finn today, and I'll be able to tell him if I'm being mistreated." She had been asking the Togruta to wash her clothes while she showered. They were at least clean of their usual sand, but she continued to wear them out of spite for Kylo Ren. She actually had not seen much of the man during the few days she had been a hostage, but she enjoyed seeing the scowl cross his scarred face every time he saw her in the Jakku clothing.

"No, but there are… other things he can do. He might try burning them when I go to wash them for you…" Rey got the feeling Asarla was not telling her everything Kylo could do. She placed the third tie in her hair and stood, sighing as she saw the other woman's expression. "I… might consider wearing something else tomorrow."

Her assistant's mouth widened in a smile, and she nodded eagerly. "Oh, good! I can see if there is anything similar to what you currently have, if you like." Rey nodded and watched as Asarla moved to the closet, beginning to examine the clothes that had been left there. A communicator on the assistant's wrist gave a soft beep, and she quickly put the jacket she was holding back. "That's Lord Ren. He's waiting for you so you can call your friend."

Rey's eyes brightened, and she ran to the door with a grin, quickly heading out into the big hall. Kylo Ren stood by the table that generally held some selection of food. He wore what he had when she had first encountered him, and his black helmet rested on the table, its dented silver gleaming in the light as she walked toward him. The round holocommunicator sat next to it. "I thought you didn't like wearing dirty clothes inside your house."

His lips tightened as he appraised her. "I have a meeting after this." His tone was curt, and his body was tense as it had been on the command ship.

Rey could tell he did not want to continue the conversation, but she could not help pushing his buttons. "Must be an important one."

He inclined his head, the scar on his face moving as his jaw clenched. "Sit. Your little friend should be calling soon." He seemed almost nervous, and Rey could not imagine he was anxious about the call.

She frowned but took a seat next to the communicator, watching it carefully. She worried what Kylo's reaction would be when he found out that Finn had been chosen to be her designated Resistance contact. He was already more on edge than he had been the first few days of her stay, and he had already displayed that he hated the ex-Stormtrooper. Finn was the best choice, however, since he was not high in the Resistance ranks, so he could not accidently give away any secrets. Plus, he was the only person in the organization that was likely to stay on the base and be able to call Rey at the designated time. Rey's hand shot up as the holocommunicator buzzed on the table, pressing the button to accept the call.

A hologram of Finn's head projected a few inches above the round device. "Hey, Rey!"

Rey grinned and greeted her friend, wishing she could give him a hug. As she spoke, Kylo's voice cut in, his tone incredulous. " _What?_ The traitor?"

She ignored the him and kept her attention on her friend. "How's your back doing?"

Finn paused and spoke slowly, having heard Kylo's interjection. "It's the same. I have to say the chair helps me get around a lot faster. How are you? Is Ren treating you all right?"

Rey nodded and glanced at the man in question. His black glove was curled around the lightsaber hilt. "I'm being treated better than I expected. I'm at his… home, although I have no idea what planet we're on."

Finn's eyes widened, and Rey could tell he wanted the hologram to show the alleged house. "His _home?_ I didn't even know he had one…"

Rey laughed and nodded, and Asarla cleared her throat from across the table. Rey glanced up at her assistant, seeing the Togruta looking pointedly at Kylo Ren. Her gaze turned to the former Jedi, and she chewed her lower lip nervously. He was glaring at the communicator as if he was envisioning stabbing his lightsaber through it several times.

"Ah… Finn, I thought I ought to go. Ren has a meeting he needs to get to…"

Finn nodded, recognizing the look on her face. He knew Kylo's temper better than some and could recognize the nervousness that others got around his rages. "Sure, Rey. I'm glad you're doing ok. Talk to you in three days?"

She nodded, and the hologram flickered off. Asarla threw herself across the table, snatched the communicator in her hands, and rolled off the side so fast Rey barely had time to register the movement before the red lightsaber split open the table. Rey stood and backed up quickly, her eyes wide as the Togruta grabbed her arm and pulled her outside. The sounds of the crackling lightsaber and breaking table followed them as Asarla closed the door behind her.

"It's useless trying to calm Lord Ren down; he'll destroy the table and get it out of his system." Asarla sounded like she had dealt with Kylo's tantrums numerous times. She smiled softly at Rey and sat on the green grass, folding her legs in front of her. "There's a reason that table looked so new. He frequently destroys it when he's here. We replace it a lot."

Rey watched her assistant curiously and took a seat next to her, pulling her knees to her chest. "Why do you work for him?"

Asarla paused and picked at the grass for a moment before looking up at Rey. "The Togruta have a colony not far from here. My family lived on the outskirts of it, near the city. Some gangs in the city would sometimes try to steal from us, but my father could always scare them off…" She broke off for a moment, playing with a blade of grass. "One night, a huge group of them came, and… he was killed."

Rey's heart broke for her new friend, but she tried not to let it show on her face. She knew she would hate someone looking at her with pity, and Asarla struck her as someone with a similar outlook. "I don't know how he knew, or why he came, but Lord Ren arrived with his lightsaber. He killed the men and offered me a job in his house in exchange for his protection of my mother and siblings."

Rey looked away from the Togruta and peered into the windows as she saw Kylo Ren's dark figure storm past, his hood pulled over the helmet. She could not believe that he would save a random family, or even treat her with decency, without an ulterior motive. What game was he playing?

()()()()

Rey lay sprawled out on her bed the next morning, staring at the ceiling. Asarla, fearful of Kylo's further wrath, had finally managed to convinced her to change into more approved attire. So she lay on the bed in dark pants and a white short-sleeve shirt, kicking her boots mindlessly. She was not really sure what to do with herself. All her life on Jakku, her days had been filled climbing through the wreckage of ships for parts so that she could have something to eat. But now, she got food every day, and she could not exactly plan an escape from the First Order. The last few days had been spent chatting with Asarla and getting the much needed rest her battered body had needed, but she felt rested now, and her assistant was visiting her family for a few hours. Deciding to explore the house without her tour guide, she left her room and padded down the long hallway. She stopped at the start of another hall as she heard a familiar crackling sound.

She was not sure if Kylo was throwing another fit of rage, but she did not exactly hear anything breaking. In fact, she thought she heard something shooting back. Curiosity got the better of her, and she turned down the hall. The walls continued for a few feet before opening into a large indoor courtyard. Kylo spun in the middle as several fake, hologram men assaulted him from all sides.

Rey stood transfixed on the crackling red blade as it cut through two holograms, the images bursting into nothing as he turned and blocked the blasts fired at him from another hologram enemy. The lightsaber cut through the blaster, stabbed through the hologram firing it, and swept in an arc to behead the next attacker. Kylo turned on one foot and turned blade wildly in his hand as blocked the desperate blasts of the two remaining holograms. He quickly angled to one side and dropped into a roll, the red blade flashing as it cut through the leg of one of the holograms. Kylo returned to his feet and finished off the two holograms with a cut through their backs.

He turned toward her, his sides expanding rapidly as he panted. He was not wearing his helmet, and his dark hair was matted to his face from sweat. Rey thought he had easily taken down the fake attackers, so he must have been fighting for some time. The red blade sheathed as he approached her, and he picked up a bottle resting on a table near her. His Adam's apple bobbed as he took several gulps of water. He pushed some hair out of his face and looked over at her, a small smirk on his lips. "Spying on my technique?"

Rey raised an eyebrow and shook her head, watching him carefully. "No. I thought I heard fighting."

Kylo laughed at this, and Rey watched him in surprise. He was a different person than the raging monster he had been during her communication with Finn the previous day. She had never seen him laugh before. It lit up his long face, and for a moment, she understood why Han had fought for him until the end. "So instead of staying away from a fight, you run toward it? Without a weapon?"

Rey shrugged and nodded, remaining by the courtyard's entryway. "I suppose so. I wanted to know what was going on."

He gave a small nodded and took another drink of the water. His eyes stayed on her as he studied her. "Care to spar?"

Rey blinked; the question was the last thing she had been expecting from him. "Erm… I don't exactly have a lightsaber." He reached into the pocket of his loose pants and pulled out the hilt of another lightsaber. Her eyes widened as she recognized Luke's old weapon. He held it out to her, and she took it tentatively. "Where did you get this? I thought it was lost in the implosion of the Starkiller."

Kylo turned and crossed a small distance to where a small storage cabinet stood against the wall. He dug through it as he spoke. "I wasn't going to leave my birthright there, or with you. I will allow you to borrow it for today."

Rey examined the hilt. The lightsaber felt so familiar in her hand, even though it was only her second time holding it. "If it's your birthright, why don't you use it?"

"I like the crossguards on mine." He returned to her with two small, circular metal pieces. She watched him curiously as he took the lightsaber from her hand and attached one piece to the end of the hilt. He did the same to his own before unsheathing it. The red blade crackled to life, and a small transparent layer was present over it. "This will prevent us from taking off each other's limbs." Kylo paused, the light of his weapon reflecting in his eyes as he met hers. "Or cut open our faces."

Rey grinned at him and followed him into the center of the courtyard. He turned to face her and held his lightsaber in front of him defensively. She unsheathed the blue blade and felt it hum in her hands as they circled each other. He watched her intently and made no move to strike first. With a small yell, she lunged forward, aiming for his left shoulder. He blocked her easily, and their blades hissed as they met. He moved his lightsaber down and spun the blade in his hand as he stepped back. Rey stepped forward and struck several times with both her hands on the hilt. He continued to block her but made no aggressive strikes back. He was probably remembering their last fight, but she could not understand why he was not taking out his anger on her. That was just fine with her if he was too coward to fight back.

She continued to drive forward, forcing him to step back. His expression was cool even as she gained more ground on him, and his hands barely moved as he blocked her every strike. Her arms started to tire as the minutes wore on. Her few days of rest and relaxation in the house had begun to take its toll on her fitness, and even with muscles hardened from years of scavenging, Rey had never really needed to move quite like this before.

His lips curled into a sneer as he sensed her blows were getting weaker, and she gasped in shock as his saber began to move in a blur. He struck viciously, landing several blows on her arms as he pushed her back into the center of the yard. The lightsaber did not cut through her, thanks to the modification Kylo had put on their blades, but it hurt like hell. She brought her blade up in an attempt to stop him, and they clashed together. Her eyes went the scar on his face, and she realized how differently – how angrily – he had fought in the forest. His blade slowly moved up until hers was caught in the junction of his hilt where the main blade attached to the small crossguard blades. He twisted his hilt sharply, and crossguards smashed into her hand. The blue blade sheathed as it flew out of her hands.

The red lightsaber touched her neck, and Kylo's deep voice was triumphant. "Dead."


	11. Chapter 11

Rey left her room the following morning with the intent on having a rematch with Kylo Ren. He was surprisingly easy to find. He sat with his back to her at the newly replaced table in main hall, the sleeves of his form fitting black shirt rolled up. As she got closer, she saw his lightsaber hilt on the table in front of him. He held some sort of glowing tool in his hand, and a piece of the lightsaber had been taken off, revealing wires and a glowing crystal inside. The tool sparked as he touched it to a wire. She took a seat near him, thanking a droid as it brought a plate of breakfast over to her. "What are you doing?"

He did not look up at her as the tool sparked again. "What does it look like?"

"You're… fixing it?"

His dark eyes glanced up at her briefly, and Rey saw his lips twitch with amusement as he looked back to his lightsaber. "Very good."

Rey began eating her breakfast and continued watching him in silence for a few minutes before another question blurted out of her mouth. "Why are you fixing it out here?"

"More light, more room out here." Kylo's tone was distant as he focused on the lightsaber.

She reached out to touch the metal piece that had been taken off the lightsaber. "Why is it broken?"

He sighed and looked up at her, setting the tool down as he took the metal from her hand. "You ask too many questions." His eyes rested on the thick bruises that had formed on her arms from their spar. "I can have a medic droid help you with those." He reached out and picked up a dark mug sitting near him.

Rey raised an eyebrow, running a hand over one of the bruises. They were dark purple, and she winced as her fingertips brushed over them. "You didn't seem to care about my wellbeing or injuries after you captured me off the Starkiller base."

He took a sip from the mug, and Rey watched steam drift out of it as he set it down. She detected an earthy scent coming from his drink. "You were my prisoner. Now, you are a hostage, and I have a responsibility to ensure you are comfortable." His eyes drifted up to her left temple where the wound had begun to close. "I can have the droid look at that, too, if you like. The ones I have here are equipped with advanced tech."

Rey watched him warily for a moment, wondering what the Knight wanted for his kindness. He was probably trying to get her to trust him, as if that would happen after the things she had seen him do. There was really no reason to refuse him, however, and declining his offer might raise his temper once again. She nodded once, and her hand moved to her left side where she had been injured in the X-Wing. She could feel the stitches under her thin shirt. "And my side, too? I hurt it when your Stormtroopers destroyed my X-Wing."

Kylo's eyebrows raised, and he nodded once. "Yes. I wasn't aware you flew X-Wings." His gaze turned away from her, and his tone became distant as if he was remembering something. "You were flying at Dermos. I thought Luke…"

She frowned as he broke off his sentence, but she got the feeling she should not mention how she had barely managed to move the blasts that had been aimed at her squad. He gave a slight shake of his head, and Rey watched as his hand raised. The metal piece he had taken off his lightsaber rose at his command and fitted gently back onto the weapon, melding seamlessly back against the hilt. She thought of how the blue lightsaber had hummed in her hands like an old friend. She hesitated for a moment before asking, "Could we spar again today?"

A smirk touched his lips as he picked up his lightsaber. "Eager to be beaten again?"

Rey matched his smirk and shook her head. "No. Are you?"

Kylo's rich laugh filled the air as he stood, and Rey marveled at how someone who had caused so much destruction and followed the Dark Side could sound so _joyful._ He let his lightsaber hang at his hip and shook his head, still chuckling. "Unfortunately, I have another meeting today." He paused, and Rey could not quite read the look on his face. "I should be back late in the evening, though, if you… would like to have dinner with me?"

She was so shocked by the question that she did not respond. Her mind seemed to have gone blank, and she stared at Kylo, her eyes fixed on his dark ones. She saw anger begin to form in them as she remained silent. "If you don't - "

"No," she cut him off quickly. She could not see why he had asked such a question, but in all honesty, she was getting bored at the house. Maybe she could get him to let his guard down even more and reveal something important about the First Order that she could somehow pass on to the Resistance. "I… sure. I'll have dinner with you."

His body visibly relaxed as he nodded once. "Good. I'll have Ms. Tano arrange it."

()()()()

Rey accompanied Asarla into the city that afternoon. The two walked through an outdoor market, and the air was chilled, causing Rey to shiver in the thin jacket Asarla had told her to wear. The market was a lot bigger than the Jakku outpost that she had known for most of her life, and Rey was getting too distracted by the various sights and sounds to pay close attention to her assistant as she spoke. "He only ever eats with others when the Supreme Leader needs him to convince someone to do something."

Rey nodded absently as she examined a piece of artwork. She had never seen much of a point for art; on Jakku, she did not buy anything that did not have a practical purpose. However, she could not get enough of the beautiful color green since she had left that planet, and she was enamored by the different shades of green in the grass that the art depicted.

" – so busy with First Order meetings," Asarla was saying as Rey looked back at her. The Togruta was looking at a set of silka beads. Rey smiled at her assistant and examined the beads, seeing they were colored lavender and gray. Asarla looked sheepishly up at Rey and put them back on their display. "My grandmother wore silka beads when she was young. I was supposed to inherit them, but they were stolen when my father died. We couldn't find them after that."

Rey ran her hand over the beads, feeling their quality texture. "You should get them, then."

Asarla shook her head, her eyes wide. "Oh no. I don't carry my own money, and Lord Ren wouldn't approve of me using his funds to buy a trinket."

Rey looked over at the proprietor of the jewelry stand. "How much?"

The owner, an older Twi'lek woman with deep blue skin, looked over at Rey, grinning as she saw the silka beads she referred to. "You know quality, my dear. Those are twenty druggats."

Rey's eyes widened, and outrage spilled onto her face. "Twenty? They are worth no more than eight!"

The Twi'lek laughed and shook her head. "You would be stealing from me! I will allow you to have them for seventeen, as a special price for your pretty friend."

Rey glanced over at Asarla, who stood timidly near her, and then looked back to the woman. "Ten."

The Twi'lek placed a hand over her chest dramatically. "You wound me! I'll lower it to fifteen, and no more, or I will be losing money!"

Rey sighed and shook her head, starting to walk away from the jewelry booth. "We can't afford that. We don't need them that much." She beckoned to Asarla, who began to follow her. "Come on. We can check down the street for someone who will give us a more reasonable price."

The two started down the street and then stopped as the Twi'lek shouted, "Wait! Fine! I'll sell them for ten!"

Rey grinned and turned back to her. "I'm glad you found reason."

She waited while Asarla handed over the money and watched as her assistant held the beads in her hands, her blue eyes alight with joy. "Thank you, Rey. Lord Ren is too busy to notice ten druggats unaccounted for."

Asarla clutched the silka beads in her hand as they walked down the street together, glancing at the various booths of the market. Nothing caught their eyes, and they soon reached the end of the market as houses started appearing on the streets in place of the merchant booths. Asarla sighed and turned around to face the rest of the market. "We should get back. I need to check on preparations for your dinner with Lord Ren."

Rey started following the Togruta to head back to the market when a hand covered her mouth and pulled her hands behind her back. "Your friend carries a nice trinket and bag full of money," a man's voice growled in her ear. Rey pulled at his grip angrily and stamped her foot down on his. The man yelled, but his grip did not loosen. Asarla looked back at Rey, her eyes wide as she saw what was happening. She ran back to Rey but kept her distance from the man's reach. "Give me your things, and I won't hurt her pretty little neck." His grubby hand left Rey's mouth, and she heard him sliding out a knife.

"No!" Asarla yelled, her small hands flinging forward. As she moved, the man flew back as if an unseen force had shoved him away. Her assistant stared with wide eyes until Rey grabbed her hand and pulled her through the market, pushing people out of their way.

They soon reached the outskirts of the city where Kylo Ren's home was located. Rey finally got a chance to look upon the house from the outside. It was circular in shape and constructed in reddish stone that was a few shades deeper than Asarla's skin. Rey could see the white curtains that hung in her room on the right side of the house, and dark curtains cut out all light on the left. She knew she had not explored that area of the house yet, and she made a mental note to do so the next day as she wondered what was kept in the dark.

No guards stood at the doors; another sign of Kylo Ren's confidence in his powers to protect himself. They entered the house, and Rey turned to her assistant, her eyes wide. "You can use the Force!"

Asarla stared at her hands again and then looked up at "The Force? But I thought only Lord Ren could use it…"

Rey shook her head, grinning slightly. "I can use it, too, although I'm not really sure how to yet. Or even why I can use it." She had the sneaking suspicion that Kylo had sensed the Force in Asarla. It was probably why he had saved her family.

The Togruta looked up at Rey with a pleading expression. Rey could read fear in her blue eyes. "Please don't tell Lord Ren."

**AN: Thanks for reading!**


	12. Chapter 12

Rey stood near one of the tall windows of the main hall, clutching a glass of red Corellian wine in her hands. Kylo had not arrived yet, and she was so nervous that she took a drink every few minutes. Asarla told her that his meetings sometimes went late. She did not know what state his unpredictable temper would be in, and she was worried that the former Jedi had an ulterior motive for inviting her to have dinner with him. She looked down at the dress she wore, sighing softly as she tugged at the material.

The dress went over her shoulders but left her arms bare. It had a plunging neckline, cinched at her middle, and had a slit that revealed her half of her left thigh. She wore plain black flat shoes as she had demonstrated to her assistant that she was hopeless in anything higher. She had initially outright refused to wear a dress. In her mind, they were frilly and unnecessary, and she argued with Asarla for several minutes over the matter. Her assistant seemed to think Kylo Ren would enjoy seeing her in a dress, but Rey did not care what he thought about her appearance. Eventually, she resorted to threatening the Togruta that she would tell Kylo she could use the Force if she continued to insist on getting her into one of the most impractical outfits a woman could wear. She immediately felt so bad that she had allowed Asarla to pick out the dark red dress.

She took another drink of the wine and told herself that she should slow down. She was unused to drinking alcohol, and she could already feel a strange buzzing her head.

"You look lovely." She jumped as Kylo's deep voice sounded directly behind her. Rey turned to face him, wondering how he had managed to get so close without her hearing him.

"Ah… thank you," Rey shoved a piece of her hair behind her ear. Asarla gotten her to wear it down, and she did not like how it kept falling in her face. She looked over at Kylo, who kept a respectable distance from her. He wore black slacks and a tucked-in black button-up shirt that fell to his wrists. The top few buttons were undone, reminding Rey of Han's usual look. He did not seem nearly as nervous as she felt. "You're late."

Kylo sighed and took her arm gently, leading her to the table which held several dishes of food. "I apologize. My meeting went longer than I anticipated." He pulled out the chair at the end of the table like a gentleman. Rey had just enough alcohol in her to accept without protesting that she was perfectly capable of pulling out her own chair.

The table was too long for two people to sit at either end and talk comfortably, so he took the seat around the corner and her left. He refilled her glass of wine and poured one for himself. "Help yourself. I wasn't sure of your favorite types of food, so I had Ms. Tano prepare a little of everything."

Rey shrugged at this and reached for a helping of the nearest dish. "I haven't tried much food other than the ration portions on Jakku and what you've had here."

He took a deep drink of his wine as he watched her take a few bites. Whatever the dish was, the spicy flavor burned in her mouth. It was so different from the bland Jakku food that she immediately loved it. "I had forgotten you grew up there."

Rey did not meet his gaze as she drank from her own glass. "I don't really want to talk about Jakku."

Kylo's nodded and respected her wish, and the two ate in an awkward silence for several minutes. Rey looked up as he shifted, seeing him unbuttoning his sleeves and rolling them up to his elbows. Her eyes widened as she saw a dark bruise on his right forearm that was almost the size of her hand and another one creeping out of his left sleeve. She knew she was not the cause of them like he had caused the ones on her arms. "How did you get those? I thought there was a cease-fire going on while I am here."

He frowned and looked down at the bruise on his forearm. Rey got the impression that he had not noticed it until she pointed it out. "There is. I am… learning a new form of lightsaber combat."

She watched him curiously, eager to learn more about lightsabers. "But aren't you a master?"

Kylo gave a soft chuckle, tearing his eyes away from the bruise to look up at Rey. "I am, yes, but there is always more to learn with everything." He paused for a moment, as if wondering to continue. "This form is particularly challenging."

"I didn't know there were different forms of using a lightsaber," she said excitedly. Her eyes wandered down to his hip where his lightsaber hung at his right side.

He looked away for a moment, staring off into the distance before he turned back to her with a sigh. His words were slow as he picked them carefully. "There are seven forms of lightsaber combat. Most of the old Jedi Order did not learn the seventh form, which is what I am attempting."

He took a drink of his wine and glanced back down at the bruise. Rey took another bite of her food and studied him closely. "Is that what your meetings are, then? Learning that?"

Kylo nodded once. "Yes, among other things." Rey continued to watch him, noticing for the first time that he looked exhausted. While she spent her days relaxing and wandering the house, Kylo was training and improving. She suddenly wanted to do the same, but she did not exactly have a teacher.

He was quiet for a while as they both finished their glasses. Kylo poured them both another glass, and Rey was beginning to feel tipsy. "What about the Force? Can you tell me anything about that?" she asked, trying to break the silence.

He smiled and nodded again, and Rey could tell she had picked the right topic to get him talking more. "I can show you."

()()()()

They were well into their fifth bottle of wine when Rey found herself standing a small distance from the table, concentrating on her wineglass. Her mind was fuzzy with the alcohol, but she still managed to make the glass wobble on the table.

"Like this." Kylo's chest pressed against her back, and his right hand covered hers, pulling her arm up so that it was parallel to the floor. "It helps to use your hand to focus."

Rey was concentrating so hard on moving the glass with the Force that she barely noticed him close to her. His hand moved off her own as he raised it, and the wine glass gently flew into it. She shook her head in defeat. "I don't know how you can concentrate so much of your energy with several glasses of wine."

Kylo chuckled, and Rey finally turned to look at him, her eyes wide with surprise as she saw how close she was to him. "I've had more practice." The wineglass left his hand easily and drifted back onto the table.

He clearly was not as drunk as she was, although he had matched her glass for glass. Kylo probably had built up a tolerance to alcohol, but she noticed when he blinked, his eyes stayed closed a little longer than usual, and his stance was loose as he stood near her.

Rey studied the warrior –for she supposed that was what he really was – up close. His long hair was pushed out of his face and blended in with the black collar of his shirt. He was handsome, even with the scar marring the right side, and she could see part of Han in his features. His dark eyes were focused on her brown ones.

Her common sense flew out of her mind with the alcohol, and she moved onto her toes, pressing her lips to Kylo's. He tensed next to her, and she was about to pull away when he leaned in and kissed her back, his hand moving gently to her neck. They parted after a moment, and Rey's head spun, although she was not sure if that was more from the alcohol or what she had just done.

He had not moved away, so she took that as a good sign that he was not angry. She raised her hand and ran two fingers over the scar etched onto his face. Kylo flinched and took her hand in his own, slowly lowering it down. "Don't." His hand was calloused in her own, a testament to his dedication to the lightsaber.

Rey was not sure why she suddenly remembered when she had broken into his mind with Force on the Starkiller Base. Through her wine-induced haze, she found herself whispering, "You're afraid of not being like Vader… You're so worried about being just like him that you don't realize that you're better off being _you._ "

Kylo recoiled, his body immediately tensing as his lips formed a snarl. His voice was low and dangerous. "You know _nothing_ of what I have been through and what I have seen." His hand moved to his lightsaber hilt. "Don't you _dare_ try to understand me, _scavenger_. What would a girl from the desert know about the politics of the galaxy?" His voice began rising in volume, and the two wineglasses on the table shattered. "You have no idea what I am trying to accomplish!"

Tears jumped into Rey's eyes as the wine amplified her emotions. She could not understand why she had said those things. She was about to give a scathing retort back when the blast hit the back of Kylo's left shoulder. He stumbled forward, his previously furious expression contorting into one of pain.


	13. Chapter 13

Rey barely caught Kylo as another blast hit his already injured shoulder, and his right arm braced himself against her. She could feel his torso trembling in her hands as she held his taller body. He made a small noise of pain in her ear as he leaned against her for a moment, and she could tell he struggled to keep it soft so that their attacker would not hear. Rey managed to look over Kylo's shoulder to see said attacker.

Five men who Rey assumed were pirates stood in a group near the main entryway into the house. Two were of another species that she could not identify, but one had blue skin and the other had brownish skin with three spikes protruding from each side of his jaw. Another man stood in the middle wore armor typical of a bounty hunter and held the blaster that had hit Kylo. The bounty hunter laughed as he watched the two. "Aw, did the fearsome Kylo Ren find a woman he cares about?"

"My room is down the hall behind you. The door only opens with the Force," Kylo's voice was strained with pain as he whispered urgently to her. "There should be a small communicator on the end of my bed. Contact Asarla." Kylo disengaged from her arms and turned as he unsheathed his lightsaber.

Rey watched as the crackling blade barely managed to deflect the next blast aimed at him. The red laser shot up into the wall, causing cracks to appear. The pirates seemed almost surprised that he had his lightsaber. Rey guessed that they had been hoping to catch him off-guard in the comfort of his home. He held his left arm carefully to his side, and Rey could see the damage to his back and shoulder. Blood seeped out of two wounds that were side-by-side and extended from the curve of his shoulders to the middle of his back. His shirt had melded with the sides of the wounds. She was shocked that he was still standing with the wounds, but she remembered he had kept fighting when he had been hit with Chewie's weapon, which had at least twice the power of a normal blaster.

She spun around and quickly darted toward the hall Kylo told her about. Her vision spun as she moved, and she needed to keep her hand on the wall to keep from falling over. Rey cursed herself for drinking so much. She had seen the dangers of drinking enough times at the Jakku outpost that she should have known better. She was not thinking straight. That had to be the reason for that kiss. Rey knew it had been a mistake. She could not get involved with someone who followed the Dark Side, let alone her captor. She could still taste his lips on hers…

Rey snapped out of her thoughts as she reached a plain black door. She saw no way to open it, so she assumed it was the door he had mentioned. She held her hand out like he had shown her earlier that night and tried to concentrate, willing the door to open. She heard a yell come from the main hall and lost her concentration as she tried to hear if the cry had come from Kylo or one of the pirates. She could still hear the faint crackle that his lightsaber made, so she assumed that he was at least still fighting.

Rey turned back to the door and willed with all her might for it to open. After a few moments, it eventually slid open, and she entered Kylo Ren's bedroom. Almost everything was colored black, so Rey fumbled for a light switch, eventually finding one along the wall. The room was smaller than hers, and the bed dominated the space. Kylo's room was neat and organized apart from a few actual printed books that lay on the edge of the bed. A small communicator that was designed to fit on a wrist lay next to the books.

She grabbed the communicator and pressed the big button on it. There was no response. She turned the communicator in her hands several times but could see nothing that she needed to adjust. She pressed the button several more times and sighed in relief as Asarla's groggy voice sounded through it. It was late into the night, and she had probably woken up her assistant. "Lord Ren?" Rey quickly explained what was happening at the house, trying to articulate her slurring words as much as possible. Asarla's voice was quiet as she answered. "I'll be there soon."

The communicator went silent. Rey glanced around the room, wondering if she should go back to help Kylo. She wandered over to the nightstand next to the bed. The drawers were sealed shut, but when she gave it all of her limited concentration, they slid open. Sitting in the bottom drawer was Luke's lightsaber.

She snatched the lightsaber and left the room, hurrying back to the main hall as quickly as her inhibited mind would let her. She unsheathed the lightsaber but froze by the entryway as she took in the scene unfolding. Three of the pirates lay dead on the floor, and Rey looked away quickly to avoid seeing the gruesome wounds that Kylo's lightsaber had inflicted. The bounty hunter had retreated a small distance away and was firing more blasts at the Knight as he fought with the two remaining pirates. He was holding his ground well, considering he was intoxicated and injured. Rey noticed he had sustained another blast wound on his left side, and his blood was dripping onto the floor, leaving spatters all around the sand-colored stone like a sadistic piece of art.

The pirates held some sort of dark blades in their hands, the edge of which shone white. They looked like excellent weapons, but they were nothing compared to the power of the red lightsaber. Kylo's weapon was slowly chipping at their blades, and he likely would have made short work of the pirates if he had not needed to deflect the bounty hunter's blaster fire every time he came into a clear shot.

Kylo blocked another blow from the blue skinned pirate and then moved to deflect the hunter's blast again. Rey watched in horror as the other pirate took advantage of his opening and raised his sword to cut at Kylo's right side. She threw the blue lightsaber without thinking. It flew through the air and cut through the pirate's arms. The blade sheathed as the hilt clattered to the floor behind the bounty hunter. Kylo turned and cut through the middle of the pirate, killing him instantly. He barely paid any mind to the newly dead man as he turned to the other opponent, the red blade spinning in his hand threateningly.

A blast from the bounty hunter grazed the side of Kylo's right upper leg. His knee buckled, and he dropped to it, holding his lightsaber up as the pirate's blade clashed against his. Rey looked up as she heard a female's voice yell, "STOP!"

Asarla stood behind the bounty hunter with the blue lightsaber in her hand. She held against the hunter's neck, allowing the blade to touch his helmet with a distinct sizzle. The blaster lay in two pieces on the floor.

Kylo took advantage of the pirate's distraction and swept his lightsaber up and through his blue neck. He stood and approached the bounty hunter, limping on his injured leg. As he got close, his lightsaber sheathed, and Kylo's right hand rose. The hunter ascended into the air, and he began choking as the Force constricted his throat. Rey swayed slightly as she moved to Asarla. Kylo's expression was consumed with rage and hatred. Even in her intoxicated state, she could sense the power of the Dark Side of the Force coming off from him in waves.

Asarla held Luke's lightsaber in her small hands gingerly as she watched this. Rey could tell she could sense the same thing as the Togruta spoke timidly, "Lord Ren? Shouldn't we question him to see who hired him to come after you?"

Kylo did not seem to hear Asarla as his hand gradually clenched tighter. Several moments passed before the bounty hunter dropped dead to the floor. Asarla flinched and hesitated for a moment before she dropped the lightsaber and began walking to a nearby door. "I'll get a medical droid. Will you make sure he's all right, Rey?"

Rey dipped her head in acknowledgement and took a few short steps over to Kylo. His breath was coming fast and short, and his eyes flashed angrily at her as she approached. His voice was low and hoarse, but she could still hear a growl in his words. "If _you_ hadn't distracted me, I would've sensed them coming."

Rey stared at him in shock as he limped to the table, his right hand covering the wound on his left side. Blood began to stain his fingers as he sank into the chair. Her head was beginning to ache from the alcohol, and she could not find a response to his accusation as Asarla returned with two medical droids following her. Rey stepped back to allow her assistant through to the injured Knight.

One of the medical droids began checking the wound on his leg. Kylo glared at Asarla as she tried to help him take off his tattered shirt, and she stepped back, allowing him to do it with his good arm. Rey winced as she saw the damage on his side. The partially healed wound from Chewie's blaster had been reopened with nearly a direct hit from the bounty hunter's blast, and the intact skin around the wound was bright red.

Asarla brought Rey a glass of water and forced her to drink it as the droids continued to look at Kylo's wounds. "We will need a healing room to fix that, sir," one of the droids told him as it waved a flash-sterilizer over his side. "We can take you to the city hospital."

Kylo shook his head, and Rey noticed he was looking less alert as the adrenaline left his system. The anger had left his voice, replaced by sheer exhaustion. "Not now. I don't want people in the city to notice this happened, and they will talk if I go there this late."

The droid must have been programmed to obey him for it did not insist that he was not thinking clearly. "Of course, sir. Unfortunately, these wounds are too large to seal with synthflesh, so we must bandage them."

Kylo inclined his head, and his eyes drifted closed for a moment. The droids wrapped white bandages around left shoulder and right leg, and he winced as they wrapped another one around his middle. Rey faintly realized that the white was the first color she had seen on him other than black and red. His pale skin almost matched the color.

Asarla dismissed the droids once they had finished, and Rey looked over at the Togruta. "You should get back home. It's late."

Asarla watched Kylo worriedly, and Rey saw for the first time how much she cared for her employer. "I should stay in case something else happens." The assistant moved to help the Knight stand, but he brushed her away stubbornly. He got to his feet, swayed slightly, and Asarla caught him. He was at least a good foot taller, and her small frame buckled under his weight.

Rey moved to take Kylo's right arm over her shoulder, her lean scavenger muscles able to support him better than the small Togruta. "I'll help him back to his room."

His frustration at needing help penetrated through her as they half-walked, half-stumbled down the hall.

**AN: A few people have commented that this story has a Beauty and the Beast flavor. Quite honestly, I didn't even notice that until it was pointed out to me, but I do love Belle, so it's possible that it could have influenced me! Y'all have sharper eyes than me! Thanks for reading!**


	14. Chapter 14

Rey woke as she heard movement next to her, and her eyes flickered opened. For a moment, she was confused as to where she was. The covers underneath her were black, and the room was dark. She looked up as she heard someone shifting again next to her. Kylo lay beside her, his muscular back facing her as he lay on his right side. His pale skin contrasted starkly against the covers. They both lay on top of the covers, although a dark blanket covered the Knight's legs and fell over one of her feet. Rey vaguely remembered passing out on the bed after she had helped Kylo to his room.

Rey watched Kylo's muscles ripple under his skin as he pushed himself up with his good arm. His head turned to the side so that she could see the profile of his face. "What are you doing in here?"

She sat up and winced as her head pounded in protest. "You were still bleeding last night when you fell asleep, so I stayed to make sure you didn't bleed out." He paused for a moment before he nodded and stood. A soft groan of pain escaped his lips, and Rey frowned as she saw a growing blood stain on the bandage that covered his side wound. "You should probably rest today."

Kylo began rummaging through a dark dresser. He pulled out a simple dark shirt and turned back to her. His face looked strained, and Rey could not imagine how much pain he was in after seeing his wounds the night before. She decided that he must have a high pain tolerance if he was already moving around. "I need to meditate." His eyebrow rose at her startled expression. "It helps to accelerate Force healing."

Rey watched as Kylo pulled on the shirt stiffly with his good arm, and she massaged her temples as her head throbbed from the alcohol she had consumed. She was mildly surprised that he had the patience to even sit still every once in a while, let alone mediate. "You can heal with the Force?"

He nodded and ran his right hand through his tousled black hair as he walked to the nightstand. His shirt left most of his arms bare, and Rey noticed he was still holding his left one close to his body. "I often don't have the patience for it, but I cannot let these heal on their own." He opened the drawer of the nightstand with a slight wave of his hand and pulled out a small bottle of clear liquid. "Nor will I allow Hux to get any enjoyment out of seeing me injured." He handed her the bottle.

She examined the bottle, not knowing or trusting what was in it. Kylo sighed as he saw her expression. "It's Comaren. Painkiller for your hangover."

Rey frowned but opened the bottle, drinking the contents. "Do you get hangovers often enough that you keep painkiller in near your bed?"

Kylo sat back down on the bed and lifted his right leg onto it, beginning to unwrap the bandage. "No. I generally need Comaren for… other things." He broke off as he examined the wound.

Rey waited for him to elaborate, but when he did not, she settled for watching him for a moment. The pounding was beginning to ebb away, and her thoughts cleared as she realized he had mentioned the First Order general. "Do you and Hux not get along?"

He gave a soft snort, and his dark eyes glanced up at her briefly. "To put it mildly." His focus returned to the wound, and his eyes drifted closed. For a moment, Rey thought the pain had finally gotten to him again, but his hand rose over the wound and remained there for several minutes. Kylo's breathing slowed down almost as if he was asleep again, and Rey felt a strange pressure around her as she stared silently at the Knight.

The wound began stitching itself together before her eyes. What should have taken weeks, even months, to heal naturally sealed itself in minutes. A jagged red scar was the only evidence that he had been shot just the night before.

The pressure around her lessened as Kylo's dark eyes opened to look at the wound. His hand dropped down as if he was exhausted. Rey stared at the Knight, not caring that her jaw was slightly open. "That was amazing!"

His lips quirked as if he was suppressing a proud smirk, and as she watched them, Rey suddenly remembered what had happened between them before the attack. "General Hux does not like me because I outrank him due to my power." His hand moved under his shirt to press against the wound, and his fingers came away with blood even with the bandage still around his middle. Kylo glanced back up at her, moving his freshly healed leg off the bed. "You should go freshen up. Watching me concentrate probably isn't that interesting."

Rey realized she was still in the dark red dress that Asarla had picked out for her, and Kylo was politely telling her to leave his room so he could work in peace. She nodded slowly and started to the door before looking back at him. "Back on the Starkiller, you said you could show me the ways of the Force." She paused as her stomach twisted before continuing, "Can… you teach me?"

Kylo looked up at her, his expression unreadable as he remained silent. After a moment, he nodded once, the right side of his mouth slipping into a half smile. "Yes, but let's agree to skip the wine next time."

()()()()

Rey wandered into the main hall a few hours later, her bare feet slapping against the cool stone beneath her. A few splatters of Kylo's blood on the floor was the only evidence of the previous night's events. She took a seat at the table and stared absently at the spot where they had been standing when Kylo had been shot. Where they had kissed. He had not mentioned what had happened between them, and Rey was hoping he had forgotten, especially with the more concerning matter of his wounds.

 _Dammit, Rey. What the hell were you thinking?_ She had kissed a man who killed in cold blood. A murderer. He had killed his own father. And the bounty hunter, who albeit had attacked first, had been defenseless at the time the Force had cut off his oxygen. She knew he had killed or ordered the deaths of so many others she did not know.

And yet... Rey could not stop thinking about the expression of agony on his face when he had been shot. His toned body trembling in her hands as he withstood the pain against her. The panic she had felt. The amount of humanity he had in him even though he had succumbed to the Dark Side. His face when she managed to get a rare laugh out of him.

Asarla jerked her out of her thoughts as the assistant approached, holding two plates of food. "Is Lord Ren all right?" Rey nodded and accepted one of the plates with a soft thanks. She noticed Asarla was wearing the silka beads they had gotten in the market. The haggling she had done for her friend seemed like a thousand years ago. The beads were worn between the Togruta's horns and fell on either side of her middle head tail. The colors accented the stripes on her tails and horns well.

Rey took a hungry bite of the food. "He was healing when I left. Did you know he can heal with the Force?"

Asarla took a seat across from Rey and shrugged slightly. "I've noticed he recovers faster than he necessarily should. I just assumed it was something he could naturally do."

Rey studied the Togruta curiously. She did not seem nearly as eager as Rey was to learn about the Force, considering she had been able to use it with ease to help save her. "Don't you want to know how to do that?"

Asarla sighed and shifted slightly in her chair before setting Luke's lightsaber on the table. Rey stared at the weapon as her assistant glanced around for a moment. "I don't have a particular interest in learning. I do not wish to become a warrior like Lord Ren and put my family at risk." She paused before adding in a quieter voice, "My grandmother was Ahsoka Tano."

Rey looked at her blankly. The name did not mean anything to her. The Togruta sighed and ran her hand over the lightsaber. "Ahsoka Tano was the Padawan Learner of Anakin Skywalker, who later became Darth Vader."

Rey coughed as she choked on her food. It took her several moments before she could speak again, and she looked up at Asarla with tears swimming in her eyes as she croaked out, " _What?!_ Vader had a Padawan?"

Asarla waved her hand to indicate that Rey keep her voice down. "I said Anakin did. Before he turned to the Dark Side." She paused as she listened for signs that Kylo was coming. They heard nothing, so she continued. "She left the Jedi Order before they gave her a full title of Knight. She had a son – my father – before… Vader killed her."

Rey sat back in her chair, her mind processing the information. Asarla seemed to think that Kylo Ren did not know about her ancestry or abilities, but having seen much of the extent of his powers, Rey did not believe that for one second. She could not convince herself that it was a coincidence Kylo had chosen to live near and save the granddaughter of Vader's Padawan. Everyone who could use the Force seemed to be connected or related somehow. Rey was just a scavenger from Jakku. She was no one special, except now she was the only thing keeping the tentative peace between the First Order and the Resistance.

She turned as she heard the pounding of boots approach. Kylo walked toward them in his usual battle clothes, holding his helmet loosely in his right hand. Asarla looked surprised as the black and silver mask hit the table with a dull thud. Luke's lightsaber shuddered before flying into his hand. "Did you keep the weapons those _pirates_ had on them, Ms. Tano?" His deep voice was laced with distain as he spoke of his attackers.

Asarla nodded and pointed to the five hilts lying at the edge of the table. They looked like variations of lightsabers, and Kylo activated one as he picked it up. The black blade came to life, and he spun it in his hand. Rey noticed he avoided moving his left side as much as possible. "Darksabers."

He sheathed the blade, his mouth tight as he grabbed his helmet from the table. It slid over his black hair and pale face, and Rey heard it hiss as it clicked into place. Kylo Ren's voice distorted ominously as he spoke to Asarla, "Send a message to the Supreme Leader that I am coming to report to him."

**AN: Ahsoka Tano is actually the canon Padawan of Anakin in the Clone Wars series. Please go ahead and search her name. The young Ahsoka is what I'm loosely basing my image of Asarla on in my head, and being the visual person that I am, pictures are key to me. Thank you SO MUCH for reading!**


	15. Chapter 15

Rey held out her hand and focused on the saber hilt. It shuddered from across the table, and slowly, as if it was being tugged by a string controlled by a distracted child, it slid over the surface and to her hand. Kylo had called it a darksaber. She activated it like she had seen him do, and the black blade jumped from the hilt. Rey waved it in the air, hearing a high-pitched whine emanating from the weapon.

The hilt was black and almost perfectly rounded, and a small rectangular hand guard was fitted just a few inches below the blade. Rey thought it looked a little longer than Kylo's lightsaber hilt, but the comparison stopped there. The blade itself was flat and curved to a point at the end. Its dark color seemed to suck the light out of its surroundings. The edges glowed an ominous white.

She sheathed the blade and set down the hilt, sighing softly. Kylo had seemed to recognize the blade when he looked at it, but Rey did not have the faintest idea of what it was besides the fact that it resembled a lightsaber. Each of the pirates had carried one, and Kylo had taken three of them with him to the Supreme Leader, leaving the other two for Asarla to put in safe keeping. Rey had managed to convince the assistant to keep one out for her. She would at least be able to defend herself in case more pirates came while Kylo was gone.

Rey lay her left arm on the table and rested her head on it as she practiced using the Force to move the darksaber's hilt in a circle. The windows in the hall were dark; the sun had set several hours before, and she had decided to stay up for a while to wait for Kylo to return in hopes that he would be generous enough to give her a lesson in the Force. As the evening wore on, she doubted more and more that he would agree.

Eventually, she stood and took several steps away from the table, concentrating on the Force to bring her the darksaber hilt. It still moved choppily over the small distance, but Rey could tell she was slowly improving. She was halfway down the corridor to her room when she heard his familiar stride enter the main hall. She turned to enter the hall when she heard his masked voice speaking to someone else.

Rey peered around the corner, staying as quiet as she could. A man stood with his back to her, and all Rey could see was a black cloak that enveloped him as well as the back of a black helmet covering his head. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. There was something familiar about the man, but she could not place where she might have encountered him. " – searching the black markets of the Outer Rim, and I will find my contacts as well. We'll find who's after you soon enough, Ren."

Kylo stood nearly a head taller than the man, and Rey could see that his hood was pulled over his helmet. His gloved hand fingered the lightsaber at his hip. "Good. Don't make me lose my trust in you."

Rey watched the back of the black helmet dip in a nod, and the unknown man strode past Kylo to leave the house. A full minute passed after the man had left before Kylo's dark mask turned to where she was hiding. The slit for his eyes seemed to bore into her. "Rey." She slipped around the corner, clutching the darksaber hilt in her hands. His arms crossed over his chest as Rey approached him. "Why are you still awake?"

Rey examined his mask, regarding the various dents and scratches on it. She supposed they spoke of numerous battles he had fought in, but they told her nothing of what he was thinking. Completely covered, she could only determine so much about Kylo's emotions from his body language. That was probably point, she supposed. "I was hoping you would return earlier to teach me some of the Force."

Kylo took the darksaber from her hands. He was not overly forceful, so she relinquished it without protest. "I had other matters to attend to."

Rey looked over his shoulder to the door that the man had exited through. "Who was that?"

Kylo's head titled very slightly to the side, and she watched his grip tighten on the darksaber hilt. "No one you need to concern yourself with."

His mask was starting to irritate her; she had been learning how to read his expressions. He rarely wore it when he was in his home, and she did not know why he had not taken it off yet. Rey wondered if he was trying to appear strong and intimidating after she had needed to help him walk the previous night. "Are you finding the person who hired that bounty hunter? Who is helping you?"

Kylo's voice was low as he spoke through the mask, and she detected a hint of annoyance behind his tone. "Go to bed, Rey. I can give you a lesson in the Force tomorrow." He turned and left the hall toward his room before she could blurt out any more questions.

Rey sighed and headed back to her own room, climbing into the large bed. She tossed and turned for a long while before she finally fell asleep. Her sleep was fitful and plagued with flashes of dreams that continued to change.

_She was four years old and standing on the sands of Jakku, screaming for her family to come back…_

_Kylo's black glove closed around her wrist as she fell into the crack during their duel on the Starkiller Base…_

_Rey opened the chest and touched the lightsaber hilt, falling back onto the floor as the visions started…_

_A red lightsaber protruded from the dark figure standing in front of her. The dead man fell to the ground, and Rey saw the menacing form of Kylo Ren standing in the rain, his red lightsaber flickering at his side. Bodies lay strewn on the ground around him, and six black-clothed figures flanked him, each holding unique weapons…_

_Kylo's hand moved to her neck as his lips moved against hers…._

Rey startled awake, her eyes wide as she suddenly remembered. The man Kylo refused to tell her about had been standing next to him in her vision. He was a Knight of Ren.

()()()()

Rey ate breakfast the next morning alone, rubbing her eyes and running her hand over her face every few moments to keep herself awake. Her arms felt heavy from exhaustion.

She had worked out that Kylo was the de facto leader of the Knights of Ren, for he had taken the name for his own. She knew he likely would not tell her anything about the organization, but she wanted to know more about them so she could at least give the Resistance some intel when she was returned to them. She vaguely wondered if the First Order controlled the Knights of Ren or if the Knights were using the First Order to help them accomplish something else. Perhaps the next time he was gone at a meeting, she could take a look around in his room for more information.

Kylo's approach broke her out of her thoughts, and she looked over at him as he strode to the table. He wore a similar outfit that he had on for their dinner, and the sleeves were already rolled up to his elbows. He seemed to be moving better than the previous day for his left arm swung along his side as he walked. He sat across from her, and Rey studied his face. He looked just as exhausted as she felt. The bruises on his arms that she had noticed during their dinner had faded somewhat, and Rey thought she saw the shadow of another one on the side of his face, although she was not certain if that was just part of his scar.

A droid set down a mug in front of him, and Rey smelled the same scent coming from it as she had the morning he had been fixing his lightsaber. He took a drink from it and cupped his hands around the steaming mug. She itched to start asking him questions, but for some reason, she felt that it was not a good time to interrupt his thoughts.

He took a few minutes to begin speaking, and he chose his words carefully, his gaze focused on the mug in his hands. "When I was in your mind, I sensed something… out of place." Kylo's dark eyes finally raised to meet hers, and Rey leaned forward, her eyes wide. "Were you able to use or sense the Force before I had you on the Starkiller Base?"

Rey frowned and shook her head slowly, thinking back to her life before she had run into BB-8. "No, but before I left Jakku, I assumed the Force was a myth, so I was not aware there was something to sense."

Kylo nodded once, and he studied Rey intently. "I believe there was a block in your mind that I… disturbed."

Rey held up a hand, shaking her head as her eyes narrowed toward him. "What do you mean 'a block?' Like someone messed with my mind?"

"I'm not sure if it was put there by someone else or if your own mind created it to help you survive. Either way, when I found it, it opened and you were able to use the Force." His hands tightened on the mug for a moment. Rey had the feeling that Kylo was cursing himself for unblocking her mind. She would not have been able to escape if he had not, and he would not have the scar he sported on his face.

Kylo's hands unclenched, although his gaze remained intense. "I am sure Luke told you the basics of the Force?"

Rey nodded, thinking back to the brief night she had spent on Tatooine with the Jedi Master. "It surrounds everything? Like an energy field?"

"Yes. Force-sensitive people such as us can manipulate and tap into the energy. You used it to open my room." Kylo clasped his hands together. "The Force can be your greatest ally. You are only limited by your mental and physical strength."

His right hand moved below the table for a moment and returned with his lightsaber hilt. He set it on the table between them. Rey eyed the weapon carefully, unsure of what the Knight was doing. "The Force also allows us to tap into the full potential of the lightsaber. Those without Force training can only use the lightsaber as a blunt weapon, which is usually more dangerous to them than for others."

Kylo's hands rose a few inches off the table, and his lightsaber levitated off the table to the height of her eyes. He parted his hands, and Rey looked startled as the hilt suddenly broke into several pieces in the air. She could identify the power grid of the weapon, and within it lay a pulsing red crystal. The pieces melded back into one hilt after a moment and dropped back gently to the table. Rey reached out and brushed her hand over the lightsaber. Now that it was close to her, she could feel power radiating from it, even in its dormant state. "The Force…"

He nodded and closed his hand around the hilt. "The crystal is uniquely attuned to the Force. Some crystals will call to different people." Kylo looked back into her eyes, and Rey could not decipher his expression. "My grandfather's old lightsaber seems to like you."

()()()()

A few hours passed, and Rey labored to push the long table away from her. Kylo had pushed her to use the Force move things with her mind, and she was starting to get the hang of moving objects around. At least, objects smaller than a chair. Rey found it surprisingly hard to maintain the focus required to use the Force for more than just a few minutes.

She was wary of Kylo trying to sway her toward the Dark Side, and she kept Luke's advice in mind to try to remain selfless. However, she struggled not to let her frustration control her as she focused on trying to move the table. The table remained where it stood. Rey sighed and dropped her hands, shaking her head in defeat.

Kylo stood near her, his arms crossed over his chest. "Giving up so soon?"

Rey frowned and glanced at the Knight. His stance was loose, and he appeared almost bored as he raised his right hand. The table went flying against the wall with the simple movement. His calm demeanor only served to infuriate her more. Kylo made it look so _easy._

She marched over to him, pressing her lips together in annoyance. She was convinced he was not telling her everything, and she could not figure out why he had not yet encouraged her to use her emotions like Luke had told her the Dark Side utilized. "What game are you playing, Ren?"

His dark eyebrow raised as he looked down on her. "I wasn't aware I was playing a game."

Rey's hands clenched and unclenched, and her questions burst out of her mouth before her mind could come up with subtler method to approach the subject. "Why aren't you teaching me the Dark Side? Isn't that why you wanted me as a hostage?"

Kylo's dark eyes narrowed. "Would you prefer I taught you the Dark Side?" His lips twitched into a sneer. "I thought the good little Resistance member would do anything to avoid that much _power._ " Rey took a step back at this, trying to get her frustration under control.

When she did not answer, he continued speaking, his voice becoming low as anger crept into it. "I wanted you as a hostage to get you away from Luke. He is trying to bring back the Jedi Order even though they were corrupt and thought themselves invincible."

His words pushed her frustration out of her mind as she stared at him in shock. "Wha – "

Kylo continued speaking over her, his hand moving to his lightsaber threateningly. "He tried to force me down one path! He left me no choice to choose for myself. I thought I would give you to the courtesy of finding your own way." His voice rose as it had the night he had been attacked. "But if you want, I can show you the full extent of the Dark – "

Rey cut him off by doing the only thing she could think of to prevent another one of Kylo Ren's rages.

She kissed him.

**AN: Leave a note, lovely people.**


	16. Chapter 16

Rey felt Kylo's body freeze in shock. It took him several moments to take a step away from her, and she hesitated as she could read his anger still on his face. "What game are _you_ playing at?" He was holding his lightsaber hilt, his dark eyes watching her closely.

She was not sure why she closed the distance between them, but Rey felt something inside her tell her that the best thing to do was to press her lips against his again. Kylo turned his head away more quickly this time, and Rey could sense his anger beginning to morph into confusion. "You're playing at my emotions." His statement was less of an accusation and more of a realization.

The Force told her to kiss Kylo Ren again, so she obeyed as she put a hand on his chest. She could feel his heart beating wildly under her palm. He took a few moments to respond, but she eventually felt his lips move against hers. His lightsaber clattered as it hit the floor.

She sensed his emotions begin to settle, and this time she pulled away. His voice was softer as his dark eyes met hers. "I had hoped you'd forgotten about that." Kylo's hand moved to her neck as he initiated a longer kiss. He was gentle, and Rey found herself thinking it felt better without the haze of alcohol on her mind. His heartbeat remained quick under her hand, and Rey could sense nervousness building up in him.

Rey pulled away from him and took several steps back. He had calmed down, but she could feel her own hands shaking. Her voice trembled slightly as she finally spoke. "I… I don't why I did that."

Kylo turned away from her, his right hand running through his black hair in a nervous gesture. "Perhaps these lessons were not a good idea."

Rey watched him closely and wiped her sweaty palms on her pants. She did not want to stop; she was too hungry for more information regarding the Force. "Please. You agreed to teach me."

He looked back at her, a bitter smile playing at his lips. "Apparently, I don't have to teach you how to sense emotions." Even as he spoke, she was finding it more difficult to tell what he was feeling. He added as more of thought to himself than to her, "I'll have to remember to block you out…"

Rey studied him silently for a moment, her mind racing with what had just happened. She thought back to the rant she had stopped. "What did you mean that Luke forced you down one path?"

Kylo's hand rose, and the table he had pushed earlier moved back into place. "I think that is the end of this lesson, Rey."

Rey took a step forward, her eyes wide as she watched him. She knew he would likely not want to teach her again if he felt that she was manipulating his emotions. She picked up his lightsaber, which had remained on the floor when he had dropped it. She moved next to him, holding out the unique hilt. "Could we at least spar?"

Kylo paused for a moment before nodding, taking his lightsaber from her hands. Rey noticed a gleam of excitement in his eyes as he considered dueling. "Yes."

()()()()

Rey backed up as the red lightsaber smashed against Luke's blue one several times. Kylo was fighting more aggressively than he had in their last duel, and she guessed that he was trying to compensate for her taking him off guard with the kiss. It had only been a few days since their first spar, but she could already tell he had been training and improving, even with the setback of his injuries.

She blocked his blade again and tried to swipe at his arm. His lightsaber caught hers before moving in a quick succession of series that hit her arms and legs several times. She continued to back away and noticed an opening on his left side as he moved. His yell of pain when she hit him confirmed that he still had his wound healing there.

Kylo took a few steps away, and Rey swore that his expression looked more amused than angry. "Not fair, Rey."

Rey grinned at him and charged, aiming for his left shoulder. Their shielded blades clashed together, and Kylo shoved his forward. She stumbled back at the excessive force. Rey brought the blue blade down as he swept at her leg, but he changed direction at the last moment and managed to smash his blade against her arm. She jumped back as she dropped the lightsaber, determined not to be beaten so easily. Rey ducked under several of his blows and tried concentrating on using the Force to bring the lightsaber back to her hand.

Her fingers closed around the hilt as it came to her a few moments later. She had just unsheathed it again when the Force threw her onto her back. The hilt rolled away from her again as Kylo's crackling red blade pointed at her throat. "Dead."

Rey scowled up at Kylo and stood, brushing off her pants. "Not fair, Ren. You cheated."

She paused, watching his serious expression transform as he laughed. "In war, the cheaters live."

His red blade sheathed, and his hand moved to his left side. Rey noticed the side of his shirt was slowly becoming damp with blood. Kylo swore softly and lifted his shirt. She approached him, wincing as she saw the partially healed wound had opened. "Didn't you heal that?"

"I healed it enough so that I could move properly." Her blow must have been stronger than she had thought to elicit the blood. "I'm just glad I put the shields on our blades." He lowered his shirt, and Rey watched his expression carefully. Their fight seemed to have expelled the anger and nerves that she had sensed in him after she had kissed him. If anything, Kylo looked happy despite the injury, and Rey realized he was truly a warrior.

His head turned as he sensed someone approaching. Rey tried to concentrate on the Force and sensed Asarla a second before she entered the courtyard where they had been sparring. "Lord Ren, there are two people here to see you."

Kylo paused for a moment, and Rey assumed he was using to Force to determine who Asarla referred to. Rey could not feel anyone, and she guessed they were too far away for her novice skills to detect. His expression darkened.

The blue lightsaber flew into his hand as Kylo moved to leave the courtyard. "Rey, stay in your room until I send Ms. Tano to get you."

()()()()

Of course, Rey was not going to follow his order. She snuck out of her room after a few minutes and crept down the hall, listening for voices in the main hall. She peered around the corner as she had the night before, trying to stay hidden.

Kylo strode in from the opposite side of the hall. He had changed into his more menacing attire, and the mask once again covered his face. Two men who Rey assumed were Knights of Ren stood in the hall. Between them, a figure was on his knees.

"Ren, this piece of scum was boasting about being friends with bounty hunter who attacked you. He was heard talking of another assault on you." The Knight who spoke kicked the man next to him harshly. As he moved, Rey caught a glimpse of blood running down the side of the captive's face.

Kylo knelt down by the man, appraising him silently for several long moments. His cold tone through the mask sent chills down Rey's spine. "Who hired you?"

The man glared up at the mask and remained quiet. Kylo's gloved hand moved next to the captive's head, and soon a scream filled the air. The two Knights held the man's arms as he shuddered under the strength of the Force. The screams stopped after a few moments. "I can take what I want from your weak mind. Tell me, and I will allow you to live."

The man slumped in the hands of the Knights, but he looked up at Kylo defiantly and spit onto his mask. Rey shut her eyes as she felt the Dark Side of the Force thick in the air around her. The screams followed her as she ran back to her room.

()()()()

Asarla told Rey that she could leave her room, but she did not emerge until her hunger forced her out late into the evening. She assumed that the man was now dead, for the Knight of Ren was not one to give threats lightly. Rey had felt sick to her stomach after hearing the agony in the victim's voice, even from the safety of her room. She knew Kylo was capable of torture, but somehow she had forgotten his terrible acts when their lips had met that morning. She did not understand how someone so adept at using the Dark Side could be so gentle. She wanted to see Kylo Ren as a clear-cut villain, but she could not look past the moments of vulnerability he had shown her.

Rey entered the hall and slowed as she saw Kylo's black-clad form leaning over the table. He still had his helmet on as he looked over at her. Rey kept a small distance between them as she glanced at what he was looking at on the table. A flat hologram lay on the table, depicting a map of some sort.

Kylo's hands reached up, and Rey heard the mouthpiece hiss as it unlocked. He set the helmet on the table, and she looked up at the man before her. Even with the scar on his face, his handsome features did not give away that he had been the cause of someone's screams give a few hours previously. His lips were tight in annoyance, and his stance was tense, but he looked at her with an almost caring expression. Almost.

Kylo pressed his lips together for a moment and looked away as he pulled off his black gloves. "I apologize if you heard any of that."

Rey picked her words carefully, aware that he was likely close to going into another one of his rages. She was not sure if she was willing to kiss him again to get him out of one. "I did hear. That man had information on your attackers?" Rey took a step closer, her eyes raking over the hologram map. None of the features looked familiar, so she glanced back up at him.

He gave a slight nod, his bare hand fingering his lightsaber impatiently. "He was my only lead. I had to get the information out of him." A slight smirk tugged at the side of his mouth for a moment. "Fortunately, I did not happen to unblock any sensitivity to the Force."

Rey did not realize that she had come up beside him. She could sense the energy of the Force running through him, the power that he possessed. "Did you find out who hired the bounty hunter, then?"

Kylo's jaw clenched for a moment, but he managed to keep his temper down enough to spit out, "General Hux."

 **AN: Writing this story and fleshing out the characters is honestly the most fun I have had in a long time.**   **Thanks for reading!**


	17. Chapter 17

Rey shut down the third book chip, sighing as once again, she came across nothing of significance. She turned and looked around Kylo's room, putting her hands on her hips. She could not find anything in his room that pointed to the Knights of Ren or even anything really of the First Order.

She had hardly seen the Knight the last few days except in passing. He left early and usually returned after she was already asleep. Rey assumed he was planning something to exact revenge on Hux, but she had a small inkling that he was avoiding her since their last kiss.

Asarla had overseen her last two check-ins with Finn; their conversations were uneventful without Kylo's rage to cut them off. Rey had avoided telling her friend about most of what had happened to her, especially her increasingly confusing relationship with Kylo. They always chatted politely, but Rey was starting to sense that she was growing distant from Finn. She had, after all, not known him for long, but she also realized that she had a lot more in common with Kylo than the ex-Stormtrooper.

Kylo's absence did give her some time to sneak into his room and look for information on the Knights of Ren, but if he had any documented secrets, he kept them well hidden. She had found a dusty image chip that displayed various forms of lightsaber combat, which she had watched eagerly, but it had not been particularly useful without a real lightsaber to practice with. Kylo had been careful to keep Luke's old saber with him at all times.

Rey left the room, taking care to close the door behind her before she headed down the hallway. She was so lost in thought for other places to search that she did not notice the man before she crashed into him. She looked up, getting ready to apologize to Kylo when she paused. The former Jedi most certainly did not have red hair or a perpetually arrogant expression.

Hux leered down at Rey, his lips curling into a disdainful sneer. "I'm surprised Ren allows such rebel _scum_ to wander freely around his home."

Rey took several steps back, her anger beginning to bubble up inside her. No matter what she thought of Kylo, she found anyone who hired a bounty hunter to do their dirty work despicable. "What are _you_ doing here?"

The general snatched Rey's wrist, and before she could yank it away, a glowing cuff was placed on it. Rey yelled in indignation and threw her free hand up, pushing Hux back with the Force before he could grab her other hand. She ran down the hallway, screaming Asarla's name for help.

She ran into the main hall and set her course for the indoor courtyard, figuring Kylo might have left something there so that she could defend herself. She got only a few steps in the main hall when the blast from a Stormtrooper hit her leg.

Agony raged from her right calf as she fell to the floor. She sucked in several deep breaths, tears swimming in her eyes from the pain. Rey could not imagine how Kylo had managed to keep fighting with four blaster wounds, let alone one. She pulled herself to one knee and looked up into the barrel of the Stormtrooper's blaster. Another trooper stood behind him.

Rey heard the most irritating laugh that had ever reached her ears, and she whipped her head around as Hux approached her. The pain clouded her mind, and she could not muster enough concentration to use the Force again. The general shoved her back to the floor with his boot, and she kicked wildly at him with her good leg until another blast from the Stormtrooper slammed into her left knee. Rey let out a scream as Hux grabbed her free wrist and attached it to the other cuff.

The general sneered at her and held her down with his knee on her stomach, a syringe held in his hand. "The little Jedi has been teaching you tricks." He leaned down close enough so that Rey could smell his breath. For someone she thought so vile, his scent was one of a well-groomed man. It sickened her. "Tell me, has he developed feelings for you, _scavenger_?"

Rey glowered up at Hux and spat in his face, pushing him away with her cuffed hands.

The redhead's expression contorted with an expression of rage to rival Kylo's when he had first found out that Finn would be speaking with her. "Insolent filth! You and your Resistance friends will destroy this galaxy!" He was about to plunge the syringe down into her neck when Rey heard the thuds of Stormtrooper armor hitting the floor.

The general stood at the sound, his lips curling back into a snarl. Rey turned her head, expecting to see Kylo and his crackling red lightsaber. Instead, both she and Hux froze in bewilderment.

Asarla stood over the two now very dead Stormtroopers, two lightsabers humming in her hands. The blade in her right hand was green and about as long as Kylo's while the other was a few inches shorter and had a slight yellow tint to its green hue. She held both in a reverse grip as her blue eyes narrowed at the general. The Togruta spoke in a threatening tone that Rey had not thought her assistant capable of producing. "Get out before you end up like them."

Hux stared at the lightsabers for several seconds as if he was not sure if he was dreaming. His hand twitched toward a small blaster that hung at his belt. The general was not an idiot, however, and he did not know how much – or how little – Asarla was trained. Rey could read the fear that sparked in his eyes. He darted out of the doorway before Asarla could change her mind and kill him.

Rey looked up at the Togruta, a laugh escaping her lips despite her injuries. "Where in the galaxy did you get those?"

Asarla slowly relaxed, and the green lightsaber sheathed. She moved over to Rey and began cutting through the cuffs with the shorter, yellowish blade. "I told you my grandmother was Ahsoka Tano. I started carrying her old lightsabers with me ever since that attack on Lord Ren."

The cuffs fell away from Rey's wrists, and she rubbed them as she looked up at Asarla in disbelief. Her assistant was generally timid and proper. She never would have imagined her to carry around such lethal weapons without the knowledge or permission of Kylo. "She had two lightsabers?"

Asarla's dark lips spread into a proud smile as the yellow-tinted blade sheathed. "Four, actually. She had the unconventional style of using two. When she left the Jedi Order, she built two new ones with white blades." The Togruta began examining the blaster wounds on Rey's leg and knee. "I'll get a medical droid." She handed Rey the shorter lightsaber. "In case he comes back while I'm gone."

Rey took the lightsaber as Asarla moved away from her, examining it closely. The hilt was almost the polar opposite of Kylo's. Where his was blunt and black, the old lightsaber was white and curved elegantly down to the end. A black crevice of sorts interrupted the white metal down the middle on either side, giving the weapon an almost feminine feel. She liked the design, but the saber did not feel as familiar in her hand as Luke's always did. Rey wondered if Ahsoka Tano's lightsabers called to Asarla like Luke's seemed to call to her.

Asarla returned a few minutes later with the medic droid, and it began spraying a flash-sterilizer on her wounds. She bit her lower lip while the sterilizer stung as it did its job. The Togruta gently helped her to her feet. Rey supposed she weighed a lot less than Kylo did, for Asarla was able to support almost all of her weight, unlike the night of the pirate attack. "I'll call for a ship to take you to the city hospital."

Rey immediately shook her head, gasping as her calf screamed in protest when she tried taking a step. "No, just help me to my room. Hux might try to take me while they work on me."

Asarla's sigh was long with exasperation as she began helping Rey down the hall. "You two are more alike than you think." It took Rey's pain-fogged mind a few moments to realize what the assistant meant.

()()()()

Rey's room was dark when she opened her eyes to find a black figure slipping through the door. She moved to sit up and had to stifle a small cry of pain as the sheets scraped against her fresh wounds. Rey reached for the lightsaber Asarla had loaned her, her heartrate accelerating in panic.

"It's me," Kylo's voice was distorted through his helmet. Rey heard a faint hiss, and his pale face came into view as he set his helmet on the edge of her bed. "I did not mean to wake you."

Rey clutched the lightsaber in her hand as she switched on the light next to her bed. Kylo walked to the side of the bed she lay on, and she noticed he was moving stiffly. "I am just a bit jumpy."

Kylo nodded and sat down on the bed. "Ms. Tano told me what happened. Would you mind if I looked at your wounds?"

She pulled the covers and sheets away from her legs, sucking in a breath as she finally took in the wounds on her right calf and left knee. If Kylo was shocked at the sight, he hid it well as he examined them closely. "I would have you try to heal them yourself as practice, but I think they're too big for a novice to attempt. May I?"

She gave a nod in permission, and his black gloved hand moved over her calf. Kylo's eyes closed as he concentrated as he had on his own wounds. The Force thickened around her as she sensed his power, and she felt a curious sensation around her wound that simultaneously burned, tickled, and itched as the wound began stitching itself back together.

His hand moved to her other wound, and she experienced the same feeling on her knee as she examined the newly formed scar on her leg. Kylo's hand dropped once he had finished, and he looked up at her, exhaustion etched onto his scarred face. "Thank you." His dark eyes found the lightsaber she still held in her hands, and her eyes widened. She should have hidden the weapon immediately to keep Asarla's secret.

Kylo seemed to sense her fear, for he took the lightsaber gently from her hands. "Ms. Tano told me everything, Rey." He scanned the hilt with a practiced eye for a moment. "It may be prudent to allow you a weapon to defend yourself if such a need arises again." He handed her the white hilt, and she took it back, feeling its smooth surface under her palm. "For tonight, you may keep that."

He stood and began moving back to the end of her bed. Rey's thoughts were on how he moved with the grace of a warrior when his right knee buckled, and he let out a soft hiss.

"What's wrong?" Alarm filled her voice, and Rey stood on her newly healed legs to move over to him. She felt a strange pulling in her muscles where the new scars rested.

Kylo's lips pressed into a thin, bitter smile as he straightened himself. "I'm fine." His hand reached for his helmet.

Asarla's words floated back into Rey's mind as she rolled her eyes. "Obviously, you're not."

He paused for a moment, and Rey could tell he was trying to decide if he should start an argument with her. He seemed to decide against it as he spoke, his deep voice layered with exhaustion. "The Supreme Leader has not taken kindly to my… distractions of late."

Rey had to force him to sit back on the bed. "What distractions? Hux ordering an attack on you was not your fault."

Kylo scowled at the mention of the general, and the jagged scar cutting across his face contorted menacingly. "He feels that the attack should not have been a problem for me if I had not been distracted."

She vaguely remembered him accusing her that night of doing just that. She realized that he was correct, of course, if she – if both of them – had not had so much wine, he likely would have frozen all of the attackers with the Force and casually cut their heads off, or whatever other horrible things he could think of.

Rey's forthcoming words of apology were cut off by Kylo's lips on hers.


	18. Chapter 18

Rey’s eyes flickered open to the sight of Kylo lying next to her. He was still in his full black clothes apart from his gloves, and his left hand lay splayed out next to him as he lay on his stomach. He smelled of metal and leather, the scent of a warrior. It was a lot better than the synthetic, well-groomed smell that she had caught in Hux the day before. The Knight was sound asleep, and she remained still so as to not wake him.

He looked like an almost completely different man while sleeping: his long black hair drifted across his face which was relaxed of his usual tension. He lay with his head resting on its right side so that his scar was obscured against the pillow, and Rey could see the version of him – the Ben Solo –  that Han had been imagining.

But Ben Solo was not the man she had sentiments for. She could sense the vibrant energy of the Force flowing within Kylo Ren even as he slept, and she realized she likely would not have felt… well, whatever she was feeling toward Han’s son. From what she had gleaned from Han before he had died, Ben Solo had a very different personality.

Hux’s taunt ran through her mind. “ _Tell me, has he developed feelings for you,_ scavenger?” She supposed Kylo had answered that question the previous night when he had initiated a rather lengthy make-out session. She knew they had both wanted to do more, but the Knight had been exhausted and injured as evidenced by how quickly he had fallen asleep when they had parted.

Kylo’s even breath hitched slightly as he shifted, his dark eyes coming into view as his eyelids opened halfway. His eyes focused on her as his long fingers curled loosely. Kylo’s low voice was groggy as he murmured, “So that wasn’t a dream.”

Rey could not help the soft snort that escaped her. “Do you dream of kissing me often?”

Kylo lifted his head, and the right corner of his mouth pulled into a half smile. His scar crinkled with the movement. “No, do you?”

Rey sat up and pulled her knees halfway to her chest, allowing her arms to drape over them as she watched him. “I dream of… other things.” She paused for a moment. The vision of Kylo surrounded by the Knights of Ren in the rain continued to plague her nights. “Can I ask you something?”

He pulled himself up so that his feet touched the floor, moving stiffly in the full clothing. Rey realized he had not had a chance to heal himself, although she did not know what wounds he carried. “You may, but I won’t guarantee an answer.”

Rey looked down at her hands, playing with her fingers as she decided how to approach him to ask the question. “What exactly are the Knights of Ren?”

She looked up at Kylo expectantly and saw his slender frame freeze. “Where did you hear that?”

“I’ve… been having dreams. Well, a dream with you and them standing over bodies.” Her voice grew softer as she spoke. Somehow, the vision became more real as she talked about it. “I’m not sure how I know the name. I just do.” He did not answer immediately, so she continued, her voice almost a whisper. “Did you kill Luke’s Padawans?”

Kylo turned to face her, his dark eyebrows knitting together in genuine confusion. “’Kill Luke’s Padawans?’ Why would you think that?”

Rey met his gaze, trying to use the Force to sense his emotions. “Luke said you betrayed him. I assumed he meant you killed the Padawans who did not join your circle.”

Kylo’s dark eyes turned stormy as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Do not assume you know anything about me, Rey. Yes, I am the first one to admit I have killed people, but I most certainly do not without just cause.” He picked up his discarded black gloves and pulled them on.

Rey waited for him to continue, but when he did not, she stood, determined to get answers from him. “You didn’t answer my question.”

A scowl formed on Kylo’s face as he looked at her. “I don’t think I need to answer if you’re already jumping to such conclusions.”

His helmet had fallen to the floor when they had been lip-locked, and he bent to pick it up. Rey reached the black mask first and held onto it tightly. “We almost slept together, Ren. I think I deserve some answers from you. It’s not like I can tell the Resistance anything, and Luke already knows what happened.”

Kylo watched his hostage helmet, and Rey sensed his growing irritation. She barely noticed his hand twitch before the helmet jumped out of her hands and into his. His voice slipped into a growl as he spoke. “I don’t have time to entertain your curiosity. Just because last night happened does not give you any right to know my past.” He stormed out of her room before she could try to calm him down. She heard the familiar crackle of his lightsaber down the hall.

()()()()

Rey studied the control board, tapping her chin as she looked at the combat options. She stood in the indoor courtyard, holding the borrowed lightsaber in her right hand. Since Kylo had allowed her to keep Asarla’s lightsaber for self-defense, she was not going to waste the opportunity to practice using it. The hologram panel was programmed to simulate attacks by people armed with blasters and other Stormtrooper-style weapons at various difficulties, but Kylo had not created a setting for combat with another lightsaber user. She wondered if this was because he had been the only known person in the galaxy to wield one in some time, but she was not sure if that was the entire explanation. Sighing, she set the program to give her two opponents at a medium difficulty level.

She turned and unsheathed the yellow-green blade, raising it to her shoulder with both hands as the hologram attackers came to life. One rushed at her immediately, and she jumped out of the way, swinging the lightsaber at his arm. The blade swept just short of the fake man, and Rey realized that the lightsaber was not as long as the blue one she had been getting used to. The other attacker fired a blaster at her, and she raised the blade to deflect it as she had seen Kylo do. She did not expect the blast to travel straight through her blade and strike her directly in the left shoulder.

Rather than feeling pain, Rey felt a strange cold creep down her arm, and she found that she could not move it. She raised the green blade with her right hand and swiped at the first attacker, grinning in pride as the hologram shattered into pieces as she cut it through the chest. She turned to the remaining attacker and tried once again to block the hologram blasts with the blade. It again travelled through her lightsaber, and she fell back against the ground as the cold creeped through the rest of her body. The hologram flickered and disappeared as the program registered that the simulation had defeated her.

The cold began ebbing away, and she glared down at the white hilt that rested on the ground next to her. She assumed that the lightsaber was similar to Kylo’s, and deflecting blasts had not seemed difficult when he had done it.

“You’re trying to advance too quickly.” Rey jumped as Kylo spoke directly behind her. He looked down at her as she got to her feet, his hands clasped behind his back. “You only know how to swing the lightsaber, but you have not learned any of the forms to unlock its full potential.”

Rey looked down at the white hilt, frowning as she recalled him mentioning there were different forms of lightsaber combat. “So blocking blasts is one of the forms?”

Kylo nodded and watched her closely. He had changed into casual attire of a simple long-sleeve black shirt and pants. His lightsaber hung as usual at his hip. “It is part of the third form, yes.”

Rey’s shoulders fell as she met Kylo’s gaze. “You mean I have to learn two other forms before I can learn to deflect? What good is that?”

The sides of Kylo’s lips twitched in amusement. “Yes. You need to learn how to properly wield a lightsaber before you can get into more advanced forms.” He paused for a moment as if thinking. “Although I think you have gist of Form One.” When Rey looked at him in confusion, he elaborated, “The first form is primarily to teach younglings to get used to holding and moving a lightsaber, and in combat, it is wild and unpredictable.”

Rey raised an eyebrow, feeling pleased with herself. “You mean I’ve already got one form down?”

“Clumsily. You’re not as fluid as a master should be, but I suppose it will do for now.” Kylo’s hand brushed over the lightsaber at his hip.

Rey suddenly remembered their two sparring matches. If she fought as clumsily as he claimed, then he, as a master, should have easily defeated her in moments. “Hold on. Have you been _playing_ with me during our duels?”

The laugh lit up his face, and he shrugged, feigning sheepishness. “I might have been.”

Rey shook her head in disbelief, crossing her arms over her chest. “Then how did I give you that scar in the forest?”

Kylo’s hand moved up to the scar, and Rey noticed a flash of annoyance cross his face. “I had to revert back to the first form during that fight, which is not one I typically employ, but it was necessary to conserve my energy. I was wounded, you remember”

She frowned and thought back to their duels, desperate for anything to redeem herself. “I hit your side during our last match.”

“Ah. I was practicing the seventh form.” He ran his hand through his black hair, a gesture Rey was beginning to recognize as agitation. “It is more aggressive and leaves openings that I have not yet mastered defending. I did not expect you to notice one so soon.”

Rey let a smirk of triumph reach her lips. “Will you show me the second form, then?”

()()()()

Although she had spent most of her life climbing and lifting heavy objects, Rey’s muscles were trembling at the end of Kylo’s lesson. He had spent much of the time showing her how to place her steps efficiently, and more time correcting her. Her muscles did not like the overly controlled movements. The second form, he had told her, was almost opposite of the first and relied on graceful movements of precision and efficiency over the wild sweeps she had preferred to use.

Her head was starting to spin, and Rey raised her hand to her temple, frowning slightly. She had hit her old wound on the floor when the Stormtrooper had blasted her leg, and she had a feeling it had agitated the concussion that Luke had helped her ignore.

Kylo noticed her exhaustion and stopped, seeming to realize she was not used to the activity as he was. His eyes followed her hand, and his eyes narrowed slightly. “Let’s get something to drink, and I can try to heal that.”

He led her to the main hall and sat at the table with her, accepting a mug from the droid that brought one out to him. Rey eyed it curiously as he took a sip. “What are you always drinking from that?”

He raised an eyebrow and glanced down at the mug. “Tea, usually. Although some mornings I indulge in coffee.”

The steam rolled out of the mug as Rey watched it. She only ever got water on Jakku, although she had heard of some of the outpost vendors drinking coffee. She wondered if the drink was anything like the one she had tried with Finn on the Resistance base. “Why don’t you just drink water?”

He shrugged and offered his mug to her. “I like the flavor. And it keeps me more focused at times.”

Rey took a sip of the tea and recoiled as the heat burned her tongue. “You like the flavor of scalding your mouth?”

Kylo snorted softly and took another sip, swallowing it effortlessly. The ease at which he could do things grated at her. “I’m used to it.” His head turned almost suddenly, and Rey internally reprimanded herself for forgetting to focus on the Force for other people in the house.

Two men in black burst through the doors, their helmets disguising their faces. The man standing on Rey’s left had a helmet similar in design to Kylo’s, although it was devoid of the decorative silver. The other’s helmet fitted closely with his face with a black nose and mouth carved into the metal. Holes where a regular person’s eyes would be were cut out so the man could see, giving the expressionless mask an eerie look. Both wore cloaks, but the first’s fell several inches above the ground while the other’s dragged behind him.

The first man with the helmet resembling Kylo’s spoke with a distorted voice through his mask, although his voice was not as deep as the man sitting in front of her. “Ren. Hux is coming.”


	19. Chapter 19

"Send for the others," Kylo ordered as he moved over to the two Knights. His lightsaber hilt jumped into his hand with the Force. Rey sensed a jumble of anger, apprehension, and even excitement coming from him as he looked between the two men.

The Knight who had spoken nodded once. "Already done. They're on their way, but they might not make it in time. Hux should be here in less than five minutes."

Rey walked slowly toward them, setting her jaw in determination. She wanted to help, unlike the first time Kylo had been attacked. He looked back at her as she moved, frowning slightly. "You should get back to your room."

Rey shook her head stubbornly, and she held Asarla's lightsaber in her hand tightly. "I can fight. You know I can. At least I can be a distraction."

Kylo hesitated for a moment before he pulled out Luke's old lightsaber, handing it to her. He seemed to sense she would not follow his wishes no matter how much he argued, and he simply did not have the time to convince her otherwise. "I cannot guarantee I can protect you."

She pocketed the white hilt and took the more familiar lightsaber in her hands. The expressionless mask of the Knight on her right stared at her, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "An apprentice, Ren?"

"Something like that." Kylo glanced at the two Knights and then nodded to the one who had spoken. "That's Acamar." He gestured lightly to the other Knight wearing a helmet similar to his own. "And Nesan. You might as well know their names if you are to fight with us."

He turned away from her, his lightsaber unsheathing at his side as she heard the sounds of a ship landing outside the house. Rey noticed that the other two Knights did not carry lightsabers. Acamar hoisted his staff and held it in both hands while Nesan took a few steps back, holding what looked to be a cylindrical blaster in his hand. She recalled from her recurring vision that she had only ever seen Kylo holding a lightsaber. She had assumed that the other members of his group were all defected Jedi Padawans, but she got the impression while watching the other two that only Kylo could wield the weapon. She could not sense the Force in either of them.

Hux strode through the main doors, his expression as haughty as ever. Two First Order officers flanked him on either side, and a platoon of Stormtroopers marched behind them, led by the female trooper in silver that Rey had seen when Kylo had taken her as a hostage. "Ren. The Supreme Leader has seen that I am correct. You have not been able to influence the girl to the Dark Side. Obey his command, and we can finally dispel the misguided Resistance."

Rey scowled as she heard Hux's words and tightened her grip on Luke's lightsaber. If Kylo had been trying to influence her toward the Dark Side, he had been doing a pretty damn subtle job of it. Knowing his impatience and personality, however, she doubted that he had been lying when he had practically shouted that he wanted to allow her to choose her own path. Which meant that the Knight had apparently gone against the Supreme Leader's wishes.

Kylo's voice was laced with annoyance. "I have told Supreme Leader Snoke that I need more time. He granted me two more weeks." His lightsaber hummed as his hand twitched impatiently.

"The Supreme Leader agreed that with your recent aggression toward me through your silly little group, that it would be best to dispose of the girl now," Hux's thin lips spread into a sneer as his eyes found Rey standing behind Kylo, "and return you to him for additional… ah, training."

Kylo's body was so tense, Rey noticed his muscles trembling. She was surprised he had not already leapt at Hux. "I suppose you neglected to mention that you struck first? I assumed we could settle our differences without the need to bother Snoke."

Rey reached out with the Force to sense Hux's emotions. The general exuded superiority and eagerness along with satisfaction. He thought he had already won the fight. Rey counted thirty Stormtroopers in the platoon, plus the two officers and the apparent trooper captain. By sheer force, they were outnumbered almost eight to one, so Hux was not far off in his idea of victory. Kylo was an excellent combatant, but she doubted he could take down that many even with the help of the two Knights.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Ren. All I know is two of your so-called Knights attacked me in my sleep without provocation." Rey clenched her teeth as she clearly felt the lie behind Hux's words. Kylo's grip tightened on his lightsaber as he sensed the same thing. "Clearly, the girl is doing something to your mind. The Supreme Leader can help you get past that."

Kylo raised his head defiantly at the general, and Rey could feel his anger rolling off him as he connected strongly with the Dark Side. "Rey has done nothing to warrant her death."

Hux lifted his own head as he raised his voice to command his small army. "Subdue Kylo Ren. Kill the others."

The two black-clothed men closed inward to Kylo as the Stormtroopers surged forward, and Rey watched in fascination as the three Knights attacked as one unit. She had thought that Kylo worked best alone, but she supposed that to become the head of the Knights of Ren, he had to be able to fight as a team. Acamar's staff held lit up with crackling white energy and slammed into the first Stormtrooper. The red lightsaber deflected a blast aimed at the staff-wielder, and Kylo's hand shot out, pushing a line of Stormtroopers into each other. They tumbled into each other, and Nesan's blaster took out the still-standing troopers next to them.

Rey turned as a small group of Stormtroopers began moving around the Knights to outflank them, and she shoved them back with the Force as Kylo had. The adrenaline coursing through her helped her focus. The blue lightsaber finished the troopers off quickly, and Rey swept it to the side, cutting through more white trooper armor.

She glanced over her shoulder and saw that the three Knights were making quick work of the attacking Stormtroopers. Kylo froze several troopers with the Force and allowed Acamar to finish them off while his lightsaber cut through two more. Nesan's blaster seemed to be on the caliber of Chewie's as it punched very large holes through the breastplates of troopers unlucky enough to stand in its way.

Rey continued to cover the Knights' backs with the blue lightsaber, trying to keep them far enough away that they could not effectively aim their blasters at them. She took out another Stormtrooper and turned to see one focusing a blaster at Kylo's back. She reached out her lightsaber as the blaster fired, willing with the Force to block it. Pride soared within her as the blast deflected off blade and shot the trooper in the leg.

She took care of another trooper and turned, watching in horror as the injured Stormtrooper she thought she had killed with her deflected blast successfully shot Kylo directly in the back. The head Knight let out a yell of agony and dropped to his knees, his lightsaber falling to the floor as he caught himself with both hands. The silver Stormtrooper immediately surged forward and snatched his arm. Kylo threw his hand out and shoved her backwards, his body trembling from pain. As he did, Hux slipped around the back of a trooper and jammed a syringe into his neck. Rey could not hear Kylo's growled words to the general before he slumped unconscious to the floor.

Panic consumed Rey. She started to run to the man she had started to care for but turned as a gentle hand took her arm. Asarla began pulling her away from the battle, her blue eyes wide. She held the green lightsaber in her hand. Rey tugged at her grip, looking back as Nesan's blaster fire smashed into Hux's arm. "We have to help him!"

"Lord Ren told me to get you out if he ever was in serious trouble!" The Togruta's grip became painful as she pulled Rey away from the Knights. Rey struggled desperately against the assistant as two Stormtroopers picked Kylo up and dragged him away from her.

()()()()

Rey pressed her back against the door, her body shuddering as she dry-heaved. Her hands shook uncontrollably as she looked up at Asarla. "We could have helped him! Who knows what Hux will do to him?" She could hear her voice near a shriek as she shouted at the Togruta.

Asarla shook her head, looking down at the lightsaber hilt in her hand. She seemed like she was in a daze. "Neither of us are strong enough to resist that many Stormtroopers without Lord Ren. We need to be patient."

Rey shook her head, her anger clouding her mind as she lashed out with the Force. Asarla let out a strangled gasp as she suddenly began to choke. She heard a voice in her mind whisper through her fury. _Kill her. She deserves it for betraying him. For leaving him behind._

"Rey…" Asarla's forced whisper snapped her out of her thoughts, and Rey took a step back as she released the Force. She stared with wide eyes as Asarla dropped to her knees, coughing as she gasped for air.

Rey put a trembling hand over her own mouth as she realized what she had done. "Asarla… I didn't mean to… I'm sorry."

The Togruta looked up at her, tears swimming in her blue eyes. "You… You felt like Lord Ren…"

Rey looked down at her hands, feeling the Dark Side in the back of her mind. So that was the power Kylo felt every time he used the Force. It felt strangely… good.

She looked down at her friend, shaking her head quickly. She could not succumb to the Dark Side. She would never forgive herself if she killed Asarla. The whispers of the Dark Side faded as she helped the Togruta to her feet. "I'm so sorry… That won't happen again."

Asarla watched her carefully before nodding slowly. "I've seen Lord Ren fight to stay with the Dark Side." She paused for a moment, her musical voice firm as she put a hand on Rey's shoulder. "You need to fight to stay on the Light."

Rey gave a single nod as she looked around the building they had entered, trying to keep her mind off the Dark Side of the Force. The room they stood in was dark and dusty. An old couch lay half-rotten against the wall to her left, and a few chairs lay turned over on their sides. She shivered in the cold air as she looked at Asarla. "Where are we?"

"There are several abandoned houses in the city. This one has not been touched my entire life." Asarla took a step further into the room, running her orange-red hand over her neck absently.

Rey reached into her pocket and pulled out the white lightsaber hilt, holding it out to Asarla. "This is yours. Thank you for letting me use it."

The Togruta accepted the lightsaber, and Rey noticed its twin hung at her left hip. She put the smaller hilt on her right, nodding in thanks. "Lord Ren agreed to teach me the basics so that I could defend myself." Her hand reached into her own pocket and produced a small image chip. "I also found some video of my grandmother fighting with them. Maybe we can watch them tonight and decide what to do in the morning."

Rey hesitated for a moment, every cell in her body screaming to jump into the nearest ship and go after Kylo. She took a deep breath, reminding herself that she was no longer on Jakku. She did not need to fend for herself alone; she needed to trust her friend. "All right."

()()()()

Rey lay awake on the floor a couple of hours later, listening to the even breaths of Asarla as she slept. They had finished watching the image chip of a young Ahsoka Tano wielding the twin lightsabers. Rey admitted that Asarla's grandmother had incredible skill, and her unique style of holding the lightsabers in a reverse grip fascinated her. Still, though, she could not help comparing the long gone Padawan to Kylo's fighting style. Rey's thoughts drifted from Kylo's aggressive movements to his lips on hers as she fell asleep.

_A man stood over him, a deep scar cutting across his forehead as he leered down at the Knight. Kylo looked up at him from his place on his knees, his voice strained with pain. "I did not attack him unprovoked. He sent a bounty hunter – "_

" _Enough. I do not care for who started what, Ren. You are injured now because you refused to kill the Force-sensitive girl when it became clear she would not follow you to the Dark Side." The man's booming voice dipped into a snarl. "Your_ sentiment _will pull you from your full power."_

_The dim light cast the left side Kylo's face into shadow as he shifted slightly. "I do not feel the pull to the Light. Your training has seen to that."_

_A winkled hand touched the scar on the side of Kylo's face, and the Knight flinched away. "Perhaps, but you are falling for her. This_ Rey. _" The Knight's silence was enough of an answer. "We shall fix that."_

Rey snapped awake as Kylo's scream rang in her ears. She knew deep down that the vision was more than a dream. She glanced over at Asarla's sleeping frame, knowing that they would not be able to help Kylo on their own.

Rey got to her feet and shook the Togruta's shoulder to wake her. "Asarla. We need to get to the Resistance."

**AN: Let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading!**


	20. Chapter 20

Rey marched confidently up to the Rodian, recognizing the species as one that frequented the Niima Outpost on Jakku. She did not particularly like talking with members of the reptilian species, for they often tried to make unfair trades, but most of the ones she had interacted were henchmen for a bounty hunter and thus did not have very original thoughts.

The Rodian stood in front of a box-shaped shuttle that Rey estimated to be about half the side of the Millennium Falcon. Its white surface was covered in dirt, and she could faintly see two red stripes on either end of the ship through the filth. The shuttle was battered, worn, and probably stolen, but Rey knew a combat-class shuttle when she saw one. They might need a ship equipped with shields and cannons for their trip to the Resistance base. She tried to suppress a shudder as she met the Rodian's saucer-shaped eyes while she focused on the Force. "Nice ship."

The sun reflected off of the Rodian's green skin as he titled his head. His voice sounded like he was gargling water as he spoke broken Basic through his long mouth. "Rides are for price, pretty girl."

Rey concentrated on the Rodian's mind, willing him to follow her command through the Force as she had on the Starkiller Base. "You will let us have the ship." The reptilian man stared at her with his starry gaze, and Rey firmed her voice, trying to convey that her command was not up for question. "You _will_ let us have this ship."

The Rodian hesitated before stepping out of the way. "I will let you have ship."

Rey grinned and immediately climbed into the shuttle with Asarla following her. She quickly pressed the button to raise the ramp and ran to the pilot's controls. "Let's get out of here before his master or whoever comes back." She flipped several switches, sending a silent thanks to anyone who was listening that the controls were similar to the Falcon's. On Jakku, she had snuck into the dormant ship countless times to study it; it was where she had figured out what parts were useful to sell from the ships that she scavenged in and how she had learned pretty much everything she knew about mechanics. She glanced at Asarla, who stood tentatively behind her. "Can you shoot?"

The Togruta chewed her lower lip for a moment. "Only a blaster pistol."

"Hopefully we won't need it, but I think it's pretty much the same. Just aim and pull the trigger." Rey turned back to the panel and gripped the steering controls as she fired the engines. The shuttle barreled forward, and she saw several people on the ground duck as the shuttle roared low over them. Rey gritted her teeth and pushed more fuel into the engines, pulling the shuttle up. Her stomach flipped as they shot into the atmosphere.

Asarla took a seat in the co-pilot's chair, watching as the shuttle entered space. Rey glanced at the Togruta, who had nervous expression. "What planet were we on, Asarla? Ren never told me."

"Kiros. Lord Ren lives in the only city that is not dominantly Togruta." Asarla's musical voice had a sad note to it, and Rey guessed that that she was feeling guilty about leaving her family. She was not particularly good at comforting others, so she remained silent as they distanced themselves from the planet.

Rey glanced through the windows as she turned the shuttle. Two small moons orbited Kiros, and the planet itself was the most alluring green Rey had ever seen, not that she had seen a lot of the color in her life. Clouds of a lighter green shade swirled throughout the planet's atmosphere. It was the most beautiful planet Rey could imagine, and she wished she had been able to explore more of it.

She reached over to the co-pilot's controls and flicked on the map, watching as a hologram of the same planet appeared. "The Kiros system? That's a long way from the Ileenium system."

"Is that where the Resistance is?" Asarla began punching in coordinates for the system Rey had mentioned.

Rey was surprised at how savvy the Togruta seemed with the navigation system, but then again, Asarla was full of surprises. She had not known her long enough to figure out all of Asarla's seemingly varied skills. "Yeah. D'Qar." Asarla programmed D'Qar into the ship's navigator, and Rey felt a pulling sensation before the ship sped into hyperspace. "It'll probably take some time to reach the Resistance if we're that far away."

She leaned back in the chair, suddenly feeling her exhaustion catching up with her. Asarla had told her to get more sleep the night before, but her mind had been consumed with planning how to get to the Resistance, not to mention Kylo kept appearing in her thoughts.

The Togruta put a hand on Rey's arm, her musical voice gentle. "You should get some rest. I'll wake you if anything happens." Rey was about to protest when Asarla's blue eyes narrowed, and something told her that it was not wise to argue with her friend, especially when she had nearly killed her the day before.

Rey sighed and stood, moving to the back of the shuttle where two beds were built into the wall. "All right. But you should wake me in a few hours so you can get some sleep, too." She climbed onto the bottom bed and closed her eyes, trying to calm her mind enough to lull herself into sleep. The vision of Kylo with the man she assumed to be the Supreme Leader continued to haunt her. To distract herself, she turned her thoughts back to the night he had stayed with her as she drifted asleep.

 _Through the Dark Side that always seemed to come off Kylo in waves, she could sense his uncensored emotions. Instead of anger and pain, she felt overwhelming_ joy _from the Knight as she carefully returned his kiss. Kylo's gloved hand moved to her side and pulled her closer, their lips moving as one._

_Rey moved a hand to Kylo's chest and his strong heartbeat quickened under her palm as she deepened their kiss, her eyes fluttering closed. His rough lips had a strange herbal taste to them, and she could felt his hot breath against her cheek. They parted for a moment, and she took his wrist gently, pulling off his gloves. His pale hand felt warm as he moved one under her loose shirt and just above her hip. He softly reinitiated their kiss, lacing the fingers of his free hand through hers._

_Rey ran her left hand through his dark hair as he pulled her slowly on top of him, and she rested her knees on either side of his hips. Kylo moved his fingers gently over her side, causing her to shiver slightly. She felt his grip on their interlaced hands tighten slightly. They pulled apart from the kiss again, their foreheads leaning against each other as Kylo breathed softly, "Rey…"_

"Rey! Get up!"

She blinked up at Asarla and groaned, closing her eyes briefly. She hoped for a fleeting moment that she was back in her room at Kylo's house, and the Togruta's urgent voice was the dream. That way, Kylo would not be gone and her terrible visions would be nothing more than a nightmare. Rey dug her nails into her palm, and when she felt a small sting of pain, she forced herself to accept which was the current reality.

Asarla shook her shoulder, her voice panicked. "We're getting pulled into a Star Destroyer."

Rey sat up at Asarla's words, her eyes wide. The shuttle was dark, and she ran to the pilot's controls, finding that they had lost all power. She vaguely hoped that it was a smuggler ship pulling them in as Han's once had, but looking up at the massive ship, she could not deny that the First Order was going to capture her. Again.

Rey looked around the shuttle frantically, her eyes finally resting on the floor panels. She ran to one and tried tugging at the it. "We can hide under the panels and take them out with our lightsabers!" She pulled harder at the panel, her muscles straining as she wondered what kind of idiot engineer had covered the underlying mechanics of the ship so tightly.

Rey jumped as she heard the familiar sound of a lightsaber unsheathing, and she looked up to see Asarla holding the yellow lightsaber. The Togruta began cutting through the panel with the weapon, causing sparks to drift up from the metal as it melted away under the power of the blade.

The shuttle trembled, and Rey knew they only had a few seconds before they would be boarded by members of the First Order. She jumped into the newly created hole as the power flickered back to life. Asarla slipped in beside her and pulled the broken paneling over them, holding both lightsaber hilts in her hands.

The sound of the ramp lowering reached her ears, and Rey pulled out the blue lightsaber as multiple footsteps marched in sync into the shuttle. She peered through the metal holes of the floor, watching the identical white boots of Stormtroopers enter the shuttle. "Sir, no one is in here."

"Check the floor. That looks like lightsaber damage." Hux's snide voice sounded from the entrance to the shuttle. Rey waited as two Stormtroopers reached down to pull up the paneling above her and then unsheathed the blue lightsaber, cutting through the metal and the Stormtroopers' outreached arms. Asarla jumped out of their hiding spot, her twin blades cutting through three more Stormtroopers before they had a chance to react. Rey followed her out of the hole, holding the lightsaber parallel to the floor with both hands.

Three more Stormtroopers remained standing, and General Hux stood at the top of the ramp, his eyes narrowed in fury. Standing a step behind the redhead's right shoulder was the familiar masked figure of Kylo Ren.

Rey reached out with the Force, trying to sense anything from Kylo. She was bombarded with anger and pain along with raw power and energy that the Knight emitted. His gloved hand twitched upwards, and Asarla, who had started to move toward one of the Stormtroopers, froze mid-step. The mask turned toward Rey, and she concentrated as hard as possible as the Force began constricting around her.

"Kylo…" she managed to gasp out as her muscles froze. The pressure of the Force suddenly fell away from her. It was the first time she had ever uttered his first name aloud.

The crackling red lightsaber swung toward her before she could even register it was in his hands. By sheer instinct, Rey took a step away, feeling the power of the blade pass inches by her face. She raised the blue blade and swept at his side. The two lightsabers clashed together, and Kylo spun his as they disengaged. "I see you brought Ms. Tano back to me. It would be a shame for her to get hurt." His distorted voice was cold through the mask.

Rey glanced at Asarla's frozen form and backed away further, trying to get the Knight away from her friend. "Leave her out of this."

He attacked again, and their blades locked between them. "You brought her into this."

Kylo moved faster than she had ever seen him, and Rey realized that he no longer held back for her untrained technique. It was all she could do to evade him by ducking and blocking the crackling lightsaber. They danced in a circle around the shuttle, and Rey found herself beginning to back down the ramp. Her arms became numb as she continued to block his powerful attacks, but yet she felt something… different with the Knight. She could not place it as she focused solely on saving her limbs, but he was not quite himself nor was he the man who had once tortured her on the Starkiller Base.

He shoved her backwards with the Force, and Rey went tumbling onto the floor, her lightsaber clattering several feet away. The red blade swung above Kylo's head as he prepared to deliver a fatal blow, and she watched with wide eyes as he hesitated. It was barely a moment's pause, but it was enough time for Asarla's green lightsaber to catch the crackling blade before it hit her.

The dark mask turned sharply to look at the Togruta, and Kylo thrust his lightsaber forward to push Asarla backwards when the metal floor of the bay shook underneath them.

"The Resistance!" Rey heard Hux shout from behind Kylo's menacing figure. She turned her head to look through the shield covering the entrance to the small tractor beam bay and saw two squadrons of X-Wings shoot past the Star Destroyer, firing directly next to the opening. The floor shuddered again, and Rey reached her hand out to her lightsaber, willing it to come to her hand.

Kylo froze Asarla again where she stood with her lightsabers and turned back to Rey. The red blade spun in his hand again as her fingers closed around Luke's lightsaber. She raised it to block his attack and watched in shock as the crackling red lightsaber dipped downwards and sliced through the hilt. The blue lightsaber fell out of her hand in two pieces, the metal smoking faintly.

The Knight took a step backwards as the shield to the bay flickered off. Two X-Wings sped inside, firing non-stop at the Knight as they landed nearby. The red lightsaber spun in a blur as he blocked the onslaught.

The X-Wing to her left ceased firing, and Poe Dameron jumped out of the cockpit, running over to her. "Rey! Let's get out of here!"

Rey frantically picked up the fragments of the blue lightsaber and took a step toward the pilot before looking back to Asarla. The Togruta was still frozen, and Kylo stood next to her, still blocking the attacks of the other X-Wing. It would be impossible for her to get to her friend without a working lightsaber to protect her.

Poe took her arm and pulled her over to his Starfighter. "We can't help her! I'm sorry, Rey!" The Resistance pilot had to drag her into the tight confines of the X-Wing as she looked back at Kylo Ren and Asarla, her mind numb with shock.


	21. Chapter 21

_What happened to him?_

Kylo had been cold. Rey had not felt that from him since he took her as a hostage. She had sensed overwhelming anger and pain from the Knight, but she had not noticed him moving stiffly or in any way injured. No, the pain that had been coming from him was psychological. She realized now that the strange difference she had felt during their fight was his demeanor. Kylo was without a doubt an emotional man, and the few times she had dueled him at his house, he had always seemed to enjoy fighting with his lightsaber. He had been fighting with raw fury as he had in the snowy forest on the Starkiller Base. He had been less focused, which was probably the only reason why she still had all of her limbs.

Someone had messed with his mind. Rey remembered the power she had sensed in him on the shuttle. It had not been the same energy she always sensed in him, but it was darker, as if someone using the Dark Side had tried ripping the pieces of humanity he had shown her out of him completely.

 _Snoke_.

Kylo's scream from her vision resonated in her mind again, and Rey tightened her grip on the two pieces of the lightsaber she clutched. She had been away from Kylo for a little over twenty-four hours, and in that time, Snoke had managed to change the man she cared about. Rage boiled up in her chest. The so-called Supreme Leader would have to pay. But he had hesitated before he had tried to kill her. That she was certain of. A part of his old self was still in there; he could be reached.

"Rey."

She looked up at the sound of her name, blinking as her mind returned to the present. Rey sat in a small room that held a round wooden table with about ten chairs placed around it. Luke moved to sit across from her, and she watched his cybernetic hand as he clasped it with his left on the table.

Poe had returned her to the Resistance base on D'Qar. They had not been far away from the Ileenium system when the Star Destroyer had pulled them out of hyperspace. Asarla, the clever Togruta that Rey was starting to see she was, had contacted the Resistance while she had been asleep. Poe had led three squadrons of fighters to the Destroyer in guerrilla attacks while they had located the signal of the shuttle.

 _Asarla._ Guilt plagued her at the thought of leaving her friend. Perhaps the granddaughter of Ahsoka Tano could be resourceful enough to try to pull Kylo's mind from Snoke's influence.

Rey looked up at the Jedi Master across from her and finally let go of the lightsaber pieces, letting them drop onto the table with two dull thuds. "I-I'm sorry…"

Luke appraised her for a moment, and Rey assumed he was using the Force to sense her emotions. She silently wished him luck, for she was not sure herself what exactly she was feeling. "I have not used that lightsaber in years, Rey. I am not upset that it is broken. Just a little… nostalgic."

Rey had managed to tell General Organa and Luke what had happened during her captivity with Kylo Ren. Or, most of what had happened, anyway. She had left out the tender moments they had shared, but she got the impression that the siblings had been able to deduce her feelings for the dark warrior. Her insistence that they soon lead another attack on the Star Destroyer to get both Asarla and Kylo out was likely testament to that.

"However, this leaves you without a weapon." Luke picked up one of the pieces, examining it in left his hand.

Rey watched him silently for a moment. She felt emotionally and mentally drained from the events of the past few days, and she could feel the exhaustion pulling at her muscles. "I can just use a hand blaster or something."

Luke shook his head and met her eyes. "That will not hold up against Ben – "

"Kylo," Rey corrected him, surprised at the firmness in her voice. "He doesn't identify as Ben Solo at all. He deserves to be called what he wishes."

The Jedi raised an eyebrow and gave one small nod after a long moment. "All right. No matter his name, he'll cut through a blaster faster than he cut through this lightsaber."

Luke reached into his pocket and pulled out a small datasphere. It looked old, like something Rey might try to sell if she found it in a ship wreckage on Jakku. Luke pressed part of the sphere, and a hologram flickered over it. She immediately recognized it as the interior parts of a lightsaber since Kylo had pulled apart his own saber to show her the crystal.

"You'll have to build your own lightsaber." Luke raised his hands, and the broken lightsaber fell into a jumble of pieces on the table. A blue crystal dropped next to the metal. "I suggest you use this crystal, since it seems to call to you."

Rey picked up the pulsing crystal and examined it in her hand. "And how do I build a lightsaber?"

"Most of lightsaber building depends upon the Force. This hologram shows you the correct way to position the power grid, but much of it is up to you and your connection to the Force. You should rely solely upon it to piece your own unique weapon together." Luke pushed the pieces of the broken lightsaber to her. "You may use the leftover metal or find anything else you'd like to use, but I cannot help you."

()()()()

Rey rummaged through the pile of pieces and added another metal part to her already full arm of scrap metal. "C-3PO, do you happen to know where I can get a bag to put these in?"

The golden droid began shuffling away. "Oh yes, Miss Rey. Why didn't you ask before?"

Rey smiled as she watched the droid. Something about the robotic voice appealed to her. She supposed it was because she had spent more of her life around machines than people. C-3PO had found her wandering the halls of the base looking for more pieces for her lightsaber and had shown her a room full of spare parts for droids and Starfighters. The room was a scavenger's heaven, and Rey was having a hard time not scooping up everything and running to the nearest trading post to resume her old life.

C-3PO walked back to her, his joints humming faintly as he moved. On his unusual red hand hung a small canvas bag. Rey dumped her armful of parts into the bag and took it from him. "Thanks. I think I have enough of what I need. Could you show me the way back to the little conference room?"

"Of course, Miss Rey. Anything to help a future Jedi." The droid began leading her down the halls, and Rey watched his mismatched arm curiously.

"Why do you have a different arm? Were you built like that?"

"Oh, no. It is from something that happened not long before Master Luke disappeared." The droid fell silent, and Rey figured 3PO would not elaborate on the story until he added, "Master Solo's K-3PO saved him and me during that terrible, terrible day."

Rey felt all thoughts of building her lightsaber run out of her mind as she raised an eyebrow. "Han had a K-3PO unit?"

She detected a hint of emotion in C-3PO's voice. "Master Han did not own droids. I speak of the young Master Solo."

Rey stopped walking suddenly, and C-3PO continued moving for almost a full minute before he seemed to notice she was not following. "Kylo Ren? He had a droid, K-3PO, that saved you and him?"

C-3PO seemed to realize he had said too much for his red arm gestured to a door and his voice quickened. "Well, here you are, Miss Rey. I am glad to be of service."

He began walking away as fast as he could, but Rey ran over to him, touching his golden shoulder. "You can't just leave me with that and walk away! What happened?"

The droid was silent for several moments, and Rey found herself wishing she could read his emotions on his face like she could with Kylo. "I think I should let Master Luke tell you that story." C-3PO hurried away before she could press him further.

Rey let out a long sigh and returned to the room, dumping the contents of her scavenge onto the table. She sat down near the pile of metal and concentrated upon the Force as she lifted her hands like she had seen both Luke and Kylo do with lightsabers. Several pieces jumped into the air along with the crystal, and Rey tried positioning the pieces into an order similar to the old blue lightsaber. The pieces came together and promptly fell apart onto the table.

She huffed in frustration and tried again, watching the pieces fall away again. And again. Perhaps she was just too tired to build something so complex. Rey rested her arms on the table and lay her head down on them, intending to rest for a few minutes before returning to her task.

" _I don't want to be a Jedi!" A young boy who looked to be around nine or ten yelled. He had short, black hair, and he clutched a book in his hands – a book with paper, not the standard holo-books – as he glared up at Luke._

_The Jedi Master appeared nearly twenty years younger; his beard was only just starting to grow in. "You have a responsibility to use your abilities to help people, Ben. You're talented. I can help you reach your full potential."_

_Ben, now about thirteen, held a green lightsaber in his hands. A blonde boy who looked a few years older attacked with a blue lightsaber. Their shielded blades clashed several times in quick successions, and Ben shoved his forward, causing his adversary to stumble back and drop his lightsaber. Luke stood nearby, nodding in approval. "Good, Padawan Solo." Ben beamed at the Master while his defeated opponent glared in hate toward the younger Padawan._

_Fifteen-year-old Ben Solo stood in front of an open doorway, his stance tense. His green lightsaber glowed in the dark as he clutched the hilt. He was on a landing bay with a dark, stone building looming behind him, and a small ship stood several feet away. The blonde boy that he had defeated in training marched toward him, leading a small group of men. A red 3PO unit stood next to Ben, and they watched as a young female Padawan ran over to them from the ship. "The younglings are all on the evacuation ship, Ben. We need to go!"_

_C-3PO moved through the doorway, holding a crying human youngling girl in his metal arms. Ben's dark eyes widened as he saw the droid, and his lightsaber lowered. "C-3PO! Get her to the ship_ now _!"_

" _Master Solo!" The red 3PO unit's metallic arm shot out in front of the dark haired Padawan, blocking the swipe of a blue lightsaber. The red arm clattered to the ground just before the rest of the unit was sliced in half. Ben let out a cry of shock and slashed wildly at the blonde. The traitorous Padawan fought back furiously and threw his hand out._

_Ben flew back into the wall with a sickening thump. His green lightsaber smashed to the ground and shattered into pieces. The pulsing green crystal rolled next to its master, a crack running through it. Ben picked it up and put a hand over his side where he had broken a rib in the impact, watching with a look of pure horror as the blue lightsaber cut through the young female Padawan's stomach. She crumpled lifelessly._

" _NO!" Ben stumbled to his feet and raised his hand, lifting the blonde traitor into the air by his throat. The boy began choking, but Ben seemed to decide that dying of suffocation was not a good enough punishment. He jerked his hand to the side and smashed the boy against the dark stone wall of the fortress multiple times. The men that had marched with the defected Padawan scattered as the blonde boy fell limp to the ground, blood covering the side of his face._

Rey woke with a start, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

"Rey?" Luke's soft voice sounded from the doorway. "How are you doing?"

She looked down at the mess of metal in front of her and then back at the Jedi Master, her eyes wide. "Master Skywalker…" She swallowed as her voice came out hoarse. "Kylo was not the Padawan who betrayed you."

Luke hesitated by the door. "The Force sends you many visions, it seems." He sat near her, sighing softly. "You saw him that night, didn't you?"

Rey nodded, running her hand over the blue kyber crystal in front of her. "He killed that boy."

"Ben was almost a mentor to Evana." Luke paused, and Rey assumed Evana was the female Padawan that had died. "Her murder pushed him toward the Dark Side." A look of immeasurable sadness crossed the Jedi Master's face.

They both fell silent as Rey's mind reeled with the newfound information. She wondered when Kylo had built his red lightsaber and formed the Knights of Ren, not to mention shed the name Ben Solo.

Luke broke their long silence and gestured toward the metal pieces. "Would you like to give it another try?"

Rey looked down at the metal and nodded, raising her hands to focus the Force on building her lightsaber. Almost all the metal pieces on the table jumped into the air as she concentrated, and they fell into a long, thin hilt. Rey dropped her hands, and the hilt – finally – remained in one piece.

She grinned and picked it up, feeling its weight in her hands. It was nearly as long as her forearm and silvery-gray in color. She unsheathed it and watched in fascination as two twin blue blades emerged from both ends of the hilt. Rey stood and spun her it in her hands, hearing the blades hum gently. The weapon was the staff she had used on Jakku, and it felt like an old friend had returned. She gripped her new lightsaber tightly as she looked at the Jedi Master.

"When can we rescue Asarla and Kylo?"


	22. Chapter 22

Rey spun the staff lightsaber easily, the blue blades catching Luke's green one easily. The Jedi Master moved quickly while fighting, and he swept down at her knee. She tilted the staff down and blocked the attack before shoving the other side forward toward the Master's shoulder. The green blade shot up and caught her again. The lightsabers hissed as they met, and Rey stared at Luke's set face.

The Jedi Master was a much different combatant than Kylo Ren. Where the dark warrior was all aggression and power, Luke was patient and made more thoughtful attacks, which was why Rey continued to lose to him in their duels. He took a step back and brought his green blade down, pushing her staff down with it. Rey gritted her teeth and pushed back, suddenly realizing what he was going to do. Luke's lightsaber shot straight forward to her shoulder just as she turned the blue-bladed staff up and over in a half circle to catch his attack on the other blade.

Luke nodded and took a step back, his green blade sheathing. On the Master's insistence, Rey had been training with him for the past week to prepare for the upcoming rescue mission. She had to admit, she was a better fighter with the staff than she could have ever hoped to be with the old single blade lightsaber. A staff had been her weapon of choice on Jakku for years, and using it was instinctual to her. It allowed her to focus more on her opponent while fighting instead of watching to see where the weightless blade was. "You're improving immensely, Rey."

A smile pulled at her lips, and she sheathed both blades, spinning the long hilt in her hand. "Thank you, Master." Luke nodded and put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

She still struggled with using the Force, and if she was honest with herself, she was a little afraid to do more than move a small object ever since she had nearly killed Asarla with her anger. She was just glad that she had stopped, unlike the young Ben Solo in her vision.

Rey walked with the Jedi Master to the cafeteria. "The mission leaves tonight. How do you feel?"

The Resistance did not have the resources to mount a full-scale attack on the First Order, so they planned to take a small shuttle with cloaking capabilities to get onto the Star Destroyer. Poe Dameron had immediately volunteered to help pilot the mission, and the other members of the Blue Squadron had also agreed, insisting that they owed Rey a favor for helping them in the previous battle against the First Order. They would be mostly alone, with the Yellow Squadron's X-Wings a short hyperspace distance away to assist them if they needed it.

Nerves clenched at her stomach, and she knew Luke could sense them. She had absolute confidence in Poe's abilities to pilot them in undetected, but she did not feel ready to face Kylo again. He had been warped by the Dark Side in just twenty-four hours, and she did not know what state he would be in after a full week.

And Asarla. The timid Togruta had been so against being trained as a warrior until the necessity had arisen. What had they been doing to her?

"Nervous. But I think you know that." She glanced at the Jedi as they reached the entrance to the cafeteria.

It was early evening, and most of the Resistance members were assembled at the long rows of metal tables. Their chatter nearly drowned out Luke's words. "You know you're ready. Getting Be – Kylo Ren – away from the First Order will greatly help our cause." He looked to the Resistance members eating together. "You should spend some time with your friends."

Rey took a seat next to Finn, who had pulled his hovering chair up to the end of one of the tables. Poe was already seated across from her, and the two men looked over at her, a laugh on both of their faces. "Hey, Jedi Rey. Ready for some fun tonight?" Poe wiggled his eyebrows in fake suggestion.

Finn smacked the pilot's shoulder, rolling his eyes. "Over half the things you say come out dirty. You're worse than an entire Stormtrooper company."

Poe smirked and took a large bite of his sandwich, speaking through the mouthful of food. "Yeah, well, just trying to make you comfortable." A piece of lettuce fell out of his mouth and onto his tray as he swallowed. "But really, are you ready to kick some ass tonight, Rey?" Rey shrugged and stole the cookie sitting on the edge of Poe's tray. She popped half of it into her mouth as the pilot objected, "Go get your own food!"

Rey finished the rest of the cookie and set her lightsaber hilt on the table. She had not yet figured out a way to carry it; it was a little too long to keep at her hip, and she felt like it was too impractical to sling it across her back like she had with her staff on Jakku. "I've been fighting with lightsabers all day. I need the sugar. What have you been doing?"

Poe broke off half the cookie that was on Finn's tray and began eating it. The ex-Stormtrooper made a noise of protest as the dark-haired pilot scowled. "She took mine! And I left you half, unlike a _certain_ Jedi." He looked back at Rey, resting his forearms on the table. "For your information, I've been prepping the shuttle all day."

Finn flicked her lightsaber, watching the hilt roll slowly over the table. "I don't think Ren has ever fought someone with a lightsaber staff before. Hopefully, it'll throw him off."

Rey felt her stomach clench again, and she picked up the hilt with a sigh. "Yeah. Hopefully."

Poe's brown eyes met hers, and his kind voice turned serious. "Hey. If there's one thing I've learned about going into combat is you have to dispel any negative thoughts." He tapped his temple. "Your mind's powerful. If you think you can't do something, then you won't be able to. But if you _know_ you can do anything, then you can."

Rey gave the pilot a half smile as Finn nodded in agreement. The injured Stormtrooper clapped her shoulder. "You _can_ kick his ass, Rey, just like on the Starkiller Base. I heard you gave him a pretty gnarly scar."

She had not told the two of the feelings she held for Kylo; they believed they were just going to save her friend and hopefully capture Ren to weaken the First Order. Her chest tightened with guilt as she remembered she had caused the scar on the Knight's face. "Yeah. Maybe we should take Chewie's bowcaster."

()()()()

Poe flicked some switches on the dashboard, and the small shuttle gave a soft shudder as it left hyperspace. Jessika Pava, who had taken co-pilot's position, hit several buttons on the console in front of her. All the lights on the shuttle went dark. "All unnecessary power systems are down and tracking has been disabled. We're officially dark."

Rey could almost taste the tension in the air. A row of seats was built into the wall on one side of the shuttle, and she sat with the other two pilots of the Blue Squadron in the first three chairs. BB-8 rested in the corner, plugged into some of the ship's controls. Rey clutched her new lightsaber hilt nervously as she looked over Jessika's shoulder to see where they were heading. The massive Star Destroyer lay ahead of them at some distance.

Poe slowed the shuttle as they neared their target and grinned. "No TIE fighters in sight. Maybe they're all in bed." They neared the destroyer, and Rey was beginning to think they would actually be able to land silently when Poe jerked the controls sharply to the left as a red blast passed right where their shuttle had been a moment before. "Shit! I thought we were invisible!"

Rey had fallen onto the floor with the other two pilots, and she looked up at the orange and white body of Poe's droid. "We forgot to shut down BB-8! He has a signal that can be tracked!" She reached under the droid's little head and switched it off. The droid made a little beep as it went dark.

Poe swore loudly and turned the shuttle, looping it in a wide arc around the destroyer. "I don't think they can see us, but they definitely know we're here somewhere."

Rey got to her feet and moved to stand behind the pilot's chair. "Stay away from the underside; they have a tractor beam there."

Poe nodded and kept his eyes on the space ahead of him. "I know. We'll have to land at a less obvious spot than we originally planned."

Rey tapped the lightsaber hilt against her leg anxiously as she surveyed the ship in front of them. A small hole in the backside of the ship stood out against the dark metal. "Try that little opening. We might be small enough to fit."

Poe frowned and then nodded again. "You might be right. It'll be a tight fit."

He positioned the shuttle and slowly eased it toward the opening. The sides of the vessel scraped lightly as they slid into the hole. The ramp barely had enough room to lower, but they managed to climb out and into the little small opening. Ello remained behind to defend the shuttle and have it ready to go when they returned.

A small service door was inlayed into the metal nearby, and she realized that the opening they had landed into had been for loading supplies before the destroyer had taken to space. She led the three pilots to the door and used one of the blades of her lightsaber to break the lock.

They entered inside and found themselves in a wide corridor. Thankfully, no one was around, and Rey was glad they had decided to perform the mission at night when a large portion of the crew would be sleeping. They paused by the door they had entered, and Rey concentrated on the Force, trying to feel for anyone nearby. Sensing no one, she took a few steps forward, holding out her lightsaber hilt defensively.

The small group headed through the hall and turned down several corners. Jessika occasionally marked the walls with a small red tick near the floor so that they could find their way back. Soon they found themselves at the mouth of a large opening, and the sound of commotion reached her ears. They pressed their backs against the wall as a squad of Stormtroopers ran past their hall. Ships stood all around the opening, and officers were everywhere. Rey heard some voice yell, "There is a cloaked ship near us! Unlock the rest of the TIE fighters!"

Poe nudged Rey's side and whispered softly to her. "This is the main ship bay. If I remember right, I can get us to their prisoner holdings. It might be a place to start to look for your friend."

She nodded and let the pilot take the lead as they snuck away from the bay. Rey noticed that Poe was holding Chewie's bowcaster in both hands; she hoped he would not try to take a fatal shot at Kylo. He led them through several corridors. They frequently had to duck into lesser halls as Rey sensed Stormtroopers approaching. The group slowed as Poe said they were nearing where he had been held captive.

Rey focused again on the Force to try to sense Asarla, and nearly fainted as she felt an overwhelming wave of the Dark Side. "He's close," she managed to whisper softly, bracing herself against the wall.

"Don't hide. I can sense you, too." Kylo's distorted voice called from around the corner. She heard the sound of his red lightsaber crackling as it activated.

Rey's stomach tightened as she heard his voice. It sounded almost inhuman to her, and she hoped that was because of the mask. She stepped around the corner and paused as she saw his hooded figure standing perpendicular to a door she assumed concealed Asarla. A company of ten Stormtroopers stood behind him. "Take off your mask, Ren." The steadiness in her voice surprised her.

His helmet tilted slightly, and Rey had a flashback to the horrible night Han had died. "What do you think you'll see if I do?"

Rey gripped her lightsaber tightly in her right hand, her heartrate accelerating. "The face of a man, not this monster."

An almost chilling laugh sounded through the mask's voice distorter, and his free hand moved up to unlock and pull off the helmet. Kylo's expression was hard and cold as he dropped the mask to the floor, but Rey knew him well enough to see pain reflected somewhere in his dark eyes. He was still being psychologically tortured.

Before she knew it, the Knight was lunging at her, the lightsaber aimed at her leg. She jumped away and unsheathed both of her blades, attacking Kylo back with both ends of the staff. He was quick to block, but she could read surprise in his expression as he backed away. She vaguely noticed the three pilots attack the ten Stormtroopers.

"I wondered if you'd build your own lightsaber." Kylo's deep voice was a growl as he had to defend himself against her attacks. With the two blades, she could catch his lightsaber with one side and attack him with the other. The Knight moved quickly, however, and managed to block every one of her blows. Finn had been correct; he had not been expecting to fight her unusual lightsaber as evidenced by his lack of aggressive attacks.

They parted for a moment, and his lightsaber spun in his hand in agitation. She did the same, enjoying the sound of her twin blades humming. With Kylo's mental distraction, and her newfound fighting style, they were evenly matched. She thrust her staff forward toward him, and he backed away, catching her blade at the crossguards of his hilt.

Experience from their first sparring match told her that he was going to try twisting her lightsaber out of her hand. Before he could, Rey let go of the long hilt with her left hand and grabbed his wrist, forcing his arm and lightsaber up into the air. The ceiling hissed as his blade cut through it. Her right hand moved back so that she held the double-bladed lightsaber at her hip and angled at the floor.

Kylo looked at her in shock and started to pull his arm away from her before her lips closed on his. She felt his body freeze next to her, and she became nervous as he did not return the kiss. He took a step away, his wrist still in her grasp. "No… I can't…"

She was about to cut him off with another kiss when he stumbled forward. Poe had shot Chewie's bowcaster and hit his left shoulder. Rey watched with wide eyes as his face contorted in pain. The mission was bringing up too many familiar memories as she remembered the night of their dinner.

Kylo turned and raised his hand halfway, lifting the pilot by the throat. Rey jerked his trapped arm down and pressed her lips roughly to his to distract him. He pulled away again, but she heard Poe fall to the floor.

She saw out of the corner of her eye that Temmin was holding an unconscious Asarla gently in his arms. "We have your friend! Let's go!"

Jessika picked up the bowcaster and fired it at Kylo again. Rey saw him try to freeze it with the Force, but the Wookie's blaster fire was stronger than a normal blaster, and he was already injured. The blast slowed slightly as it crashed into his arm. He dropped his lightsaber as pain consumed his face, and Rey sensed confusion emanating through the waves of the Dark Side he gave off. His dark eyes narrowed as they met hers.

She was still close enough to him that she managed to shove the syringe of sedative into his neck before he could stop her. He stared at her with a look of almost betrayal as she watched the drug begin to take effect. Rey picked up the cross-guarded lightsaber as she caught Kylo's fall.


	23. Chapter 23

Rey pulled Kylo's injured arm over her shoulders, putting his lightsaber at her hip. His lean body was dense, heavy muscle, not to mention he was several inches taller than she, so her even own scavenger muscles strained to hold his deadweight. Jessika ran over to her and took Kylo's other arm over her own shoulders, and together they followed Temmin and Poe back down the corridor they had come. Rey scooped up the discarded black helmet as they passed it.

Poe held the bowcaster tightly in his hands as they moved, and Rey noticed he was limping from a blaster wound on his right thigh. Temmin had a similar injury on his calf, but he held Asarla's small form in his arms steadily as they moved quietly. She could not see Jessika, but she occasionally heard the female pilot hiss in pain. Rey was the only uninjured member of their group, but she felt a small surge of pride for her adopted squadron. They had bravely fought and defeated ten highly trained Stormtroopers and managed to walk away. Now they just needed to get back to their shuttle before they ran into more.

Rey could feel Kylo's blood drip down her back from his shoulder wound, and more blood dropped to in thick splatters onto the floor in front of her from his arm. At least he was not wounded near a vital organ, but he was still bleeding too heavily for her liking.

The group moved to the hall near the large ship bay, and Rey froze as she heard a familiar snide voice. "So good of you to come back on your own, little Jedi."

General Hux stood near the opening to the ship bay with fifteen Stormtroopers behind him and the silver armored captain. Rey clutched her lightsaber tightly as their small group huddled together in the hall. "Poe," she whispered behind the pilot, "when I give you the signal, shoot the general and then take Ren and get back to the shuttle. I'll hold them off as long as I can; just have it ready for me to jump on."

Poe's head lowered very slightly as he silently acknowledged her. Rey raised her voice as she made eye contact with the redheaded general. "Your ship isn't comfortable enough for my liking. I'm afraid we'll have to leave. _Now!"_

Poe fired the bowcaster several times at the group of Stormtroopers. The weapon had a significant kickback, and the pilot had trouble aiming correctly. He missed Hux, but his shots smashed through several unlucky troopers' armor. Rey jumped in front of him, activating her lightsaber as Poe ducked and took Kylo's unconscious form from her.

She spun the lightsaber in her hand and concentrated on the Force, watching as the retaliating Stormtrooper fire deflected off the blue blades and shot back at her opponents. Two more troopers fell, and Rey resisted the urge to jump at them. Every instinct in her told her to kill them all, but the survival part of her mind reeled her back. It would be suicide, even with her lightsaber.

Rey took a quick glanced behind her, seeing her group had gotten away down the hall toward their shuttle. The Stormtrooper captain was running toward her with another trooper, both firing blasters at her evenly. Rey took a step back as they advanced and swept her blade down low. The captain managed to jump back, but the other trooper fell as her lightsaber cut through his legs. Rey shoved the captain backwards into Hux with the Force and turned to run after her group, holding her lightsaber behind her to deflect any other attacks.

She ran down the halls, following the marks Jessika had left to find her way back. More Stormtroopers were starting to flood the halls, and she had to turn every few steps to deflect or attack. She reached the door to the opening where their shuttle was parked and shoved it open, running at full speed to the vessel when a blast smashed into her calf.

Rey fell to the ground in shock, letting out a cry of pain as her lightsaber rolled away. She pulled herself onto her side, looking behind her to see two Stormtroopers rushing toward her. Rey reached to her hip and pulled out Kylo's lightsaber that hung there. The blade crackled to life in her hand, and she managed to deflect another blast as the troopers advanced on her. She swept out with the long blade and felt it cut through her two attackers. They fell to the floor, and Rey held out her hand for her own lightsaber, feeling the power of Kylo's weapon barely contained in the hilt.

She stumbled to her feet and looked back as several more Stormtroopers flooded through the door. She held Kylo's lightsaber out to deflect their shots as the shuttle whirred to life and began firing back. She grinned and limped quickly to the ramp, shouting for her friends to go. The vessel shot out of the opening before the ramp fully closed, and Rey collapsed on the floor, the red lightsaber sheathing at her side.

Asarla lay across the seats that were attached to the wall on one side, and Kylo was sprawled unceremoniously on the floor, his blood beginning to pool around his injuries. Rey pulled herself onto a free seat, panting heavily as she gently ran a hand over the unconscious Togruta. "Ello, check if Ren has any tracking devices on him."

Rey found nothing of the sort on Asarla, but the pilot found a small communicator on Kylo's left wrist. He pulled off the Knight's glove and unstrapped the device before stamping on it several times. "That looks like the only thing."

She nodded and looked to the pilot's chair, seeing Jessika flipping switches and pressing buttons as quickly as she could while Poe maneuvered the shuttle past several blasts from the Star Destroyer. "We're dark again. I'm going to take a detour, but they shouldn't be able to find us with the cloaking."

()()()()

Rey spun the lightsaber hilt in her hand absently as she stared at the floor. She sat next to Kylo's bed in a small living space, waiting for the Knight to wake up. He had burned through the sedative faster than they had anticipated on the shuttle, and they had needed to administer three more doses to keep him unconscious during their trip back to the Resistance. The medical droids had given him a fourth when he had started to wake up when they were treating his injuries.

The door to the room was closed, but Rey knew two guards were posted just outside. She and Luke had decided that Kylo might be more complacent if he woke to just her and not surrounded by enemies or his former Jedi Master. They had kept their mission a secret as much as possible from the rest of the Resistance members. Many had family members that had been killed on Kylo's orders, and they likely would not react well to seeing him injured and vulnerable in the infirmary.

Rey sighed and glanced at the Knight's sleeping form, studying his calm face. He had been stripped down to a sleeveless top that he had been wearing under the rest of his heavy dark clothing, and Rey could see the bandages the medical droids had placed around his shoulder and arm. His helmet and the rest of his clothes lay at the end of the bed. Kylo's face was pale, and she assumed that his blood loss was the reason he had not broken through the fifth dose of sedative already.

Rey took out the Knight's lightsaber and was just beginning to compare it to her own when he stirred. She looked up at him, watching his eyelids flicker open and closed. It took him several minutes to fully wake from the multiple doses of sedation he had been under, but eventually his dark eyes focused on her. His pronounced Adam's apple moved as he swallowed, and he spoke with a groggy voice. "How long?"

Rey frowned in confusion, having expected him to ask where he was or what had happened. "How long….?"

"How long have I been out?" His deep voice was stronger the second time he spoke, but Rey could read pain in his expression.

She realized after a moment that he knew exactly what had happened to him and had likely already deduced where he was. She assumed that he would have already tried attacking her if he did not have his injuries. "You've been out for maybe twelve hours? We had to sedate you several times because you kept waking up."

He started to sit up and hissed in pain as he moved his injured shoulder. Rey watched him warily and felt the syringe in her pocket just in case he got out of control. Kylo was strangely calm, but she could sense the stifling power of the Dark Side coming off him in increasing waves as the last of the sedative's effects wore off.

His eyes met hers as he pulled himself up, and she suddenly felt a sharp, stabbing pressure in her mind. She gasped and stood, pushing back against him with the Force. Both of their hands raised as they pushed back and forth mentally for several minutes. Their minds touched as they both fought for the upper hand, and when it became clear neither could win, they both relinquished the Force.

Rey took several steps back, her eyes wide as she watched Kylo. She had felt – experienced – the pain in his mind amidst the chaos of power and raw emotion. She could not believe that he was still functioning let alone moving, and she did not want to imagine the torture he had experienced the past week. "You…" She found she could not form a cohesive sentence, so she let the word hang in the air as he glared up at her.

Rey remembered the short conversation between Kylo and Hux in the house on Kiros. The Supreme Leader had wanted Kylo to dispose of her, presumably before she received proper Jedi training. Most of his torture had probably steamed from his disobedience. She knew that caring for someone – even loving them – was not out of the emotional range of someone who practiced the Dark Side; Luke had told her smatterings of Anakin's Skywalker's fall to the dark with love. However, Snoke, not unreasonably, wanted Kylo's unwavering loyalty. With her, it seemed that the Knight was capable of going against orders for her wellbeing.

His voice was ragged with exhaustion as his hand moved over the wound on his arm. "I'm supposed to kill you."

Even injured, he had plenty of power to grab her neck with the Force and choke her or even smash her against the wall before she could protect herself, but he had not acted on Snoke's order yet. She stared at him warily, her hand fingering the syringe still in her pocket. "Then why haven't you?"

A look of unfathomable conflict passed over his features, and she took a step toward him as instinct told her to help him. His body trembled slightly, and Rey realized he was fighting the pain of wanting to obey Snoke's orders and his want to protect her. His hands gripped the covers of the bed tightly as he looked away. "It's easier to justify killing when you're directly attacking."

Rey reached out to touch his shoulder, and Kylo's right hand shot up, snatching her wrist. He stood and used the momentum to shove her against the wall, his left forearm locking across her throat. He pinned her wrist above her head as he glared down at her. She reached into her pocket with her free hand and pulled out the syringe. He glanced down at her hand, and Rey could sense his anger rising as the syringe crashed against the back wall of room with his command of the Force.

She raised her hand and smashed her fist as hard as she could against the wound on Kylo's arm. He let a yell, and his left arm fell away from her throat. Desperate to calm the Knight down, Rey took the opportunity to press her lips to his. Kylo let go of her wristed and backed away from her, his eyes narrowing as he growled, "Stop doing that."

Rey shook her head and closed the distance between them, backing him against the wall this time. His right hand raised to use the Force, but she grabbed it and interlaced their fingers as she kissed him again. Kylo took a long moment to turn his head away.

She reached out and brushed her hand over his scar gently. For once, he did not jerk away, and she swore that he actually leaned slightly into her touch. Rey hoped that doing the exact opposite of Snoke – being calm and compassionate – would help relieve some of his torment and show Kylo that he was safe, at least with her. Rey began to sense less of the overwhelming feel of the Dark Side from him. It was still there as it always was, but she suspected that calming him would at least start to loosen the grip of whatever Snoke had done to his mind.

Rey gently moved his head to face her again, and she kissed him slowly. He hesitated for several long moments before he allowed himself to kiss her back. She felt his body relax ever-so-slightly, and he moved his right hand up gently to her neck. She kept the kiss tender as she sensed his emotions begin to settle.

Kylo pulled away after a few minutes, his eyes half closed as they remained close. She felt nervous energy in him as he whispered in a rough voice, "It's not safe for you to be around me."

Rey felt relief in her chest, even at the warning in his voice. Kylo was battling Snoke's cruel influence because of her. She fully appreciated his strength and power as she looked over his scarred face. The kind of pain she had felt in his mind would have driven most people insane, but he had kept moving forward, kept fighting both physically and mentally. She was not sure she would ever comprehend what had happened in Kylo's past to give him such stamina.

She looked at the bandage on his arm, which was starting to stain red from her earlier hit, as an idea popped into her mind. It was probably dangerous, especially for her, but it might help him work through some of the anger she could sense in him. "Can you heal yourself?"

His dark eyes searched her face for a moment. "Well enough, why?" She took a step away from him as she felt the Dark Side radiating from him again.

Thinking of the joy he had shown back at in his house when they had fought, Rey held up her lightsaber hilt. "Care to spar, Ren?"

**AN: Thanks for reading!**


	24. Chapter 24

They stood outside of the main base at a fair distance from the Resistance's ships. Rey zipped up her gray jacket as a cool breeze brushed over them and handed Kylo his lightsaber with a shielding piece attached to the end of it. The Knight took it from her and backed away, his body tense with energy. He had put his usual battle clothing mostly to keep warm, but Rey had insisted he leave off his hood and helmet so that any Resistance member who saw him would not immediate assume he was attacking. Most people had not seen the face of Kylo Ren anyway, but once anybody saw their spar they would know him by his unique lightsaber.

Luke stood nearby along with Poe and Chewie, all ready to intervene should Kylo try something to critically harm Rey. With Kylo's mental instability, no one wanted to take any chances with him. Luke and Poe had both protested when she had told them what they were going to do, but Rey had reasoned that getting Kylo moving and thinking about the strategy of a lightsaber duel would help distract him from Snoke's dark influence on his mind.

Kylo unsheathed his lightsaber and watched Rey do the same as he spun his hilt in his right hand. Rey held her own long hilt tightly in both hands, and he jumped forward to attack. She brought up her blue blade to block him hastily, and they immediately began dancing around the space in a flurry of blows.

She jabbed her staff forward toward his weakened shoulder – which he had not healed fully in the interest of saving energy – and he twisted in a complete circle to avoid her blade. His lightsaber met hers as he turned back and pushed her staff upwards. Rey pulled the other end of her staff up toward his neck, and Kylo ducked underneath it, swiping his blade at her ankles. She jumped to avoid it and took several steps backwards.

They kept the space between them for a few moments. The injury she had received on her calf during their escape from the Star Destroyer screamed through its stitches, and she noticed Kylo favored his right arm to avoid pulling the half-healed wounds on his left arm and shoulder. His dark eyes were focused as he watched her, however, and Rey hoped that the heat of their duel was helping him. Kylo ran his left hand through his long black hair to push it out of his face and lunged forward again.

The sound of their lightsabers hissing and cracking as they continuously met filled the air. Kylo moved to hold his hilt in both of his hands as it spun at his shoulder level, and Rey had to twist her staff above her head to intercept his quick attacks. They moved in circles around each other as they both tried to find an opening to exploit. His left arm lowered slightly as his wounds exhausted his muscles, and Rey pushed her right fist forward, slamming it into the side of his face with the extra force of her lightsaber behind her blow.

Kylo let out a yell and stumbled backwards, battering away her lightsaber as she tried to finish the duel with an attack to his side. He stalked a couple of meters away from her, his blade spinning in his hand as he watched her closely. Rey's eyes followed him intently, and she noticed they were both panting from the exertion. She glanced to her side briefly, realizing their match was starting to draw a small crowd.

Kylo lunged as he saw her distraction, and she blocked his blade at the last moment as it swept toward her neck. Their lightsabers locked together, sputtering at the contact. He took a step away, barely breaking their sabers' connection when he reached out with his right hand and grabbed her long hilt. Rey felt it jerk from her hands, and she instinctually reached down and took his own lightsaber from his weakened left grasp.

They danced away from each other, holding the other's unfamiliar weapons in their hands. Kylo's hilt was surprisingly heavy, and it vibrated slightly in her hand as it crackled. He glanced briefly down at her staff lightsaber before he took a step toward her. One of the blades sheathed, leaving him with only one to work with as he attacked again.

Rey raised the red blade and parried several blows, quickly discovering that she could not use his strange lightsaber effectively without practice. It was thankfully shielded, or she would have cut through her hands several times with the awkward cross-guards. They were quickly bruising her hand, however, and when the blue lightsaber slammed just a few inches above the hilt, she could not help but let go of it. Her own lightsaber pointed at her neck as Kylo ended their duel.

Rey scowled at him as a grin came to his face, and he handed her the long hilt as his own lightsaber jumped into his hand with the Force. Kylo glanced to his side in surprise as several people in the crowd gave a smattering of applause; he must have been so focused on the fight he had not noticed the Resistance members gathering around. Rey could hear a few members muttering Kylo's full name as they speculated why he was there and why they were not actively trying to kill each other.

She examined his expression for a moment and was pleased to see that she had been right about sparring with him. The Knight looked better – calmer – from the physical exertion, at least until a female voice called from behind him. "Ben."

His entire body tensed as Leia's voice pierced the air, and he turned his head to look over his shoulder. "You know I do not answer to that name."

Rey peered around Kylo as Poe tightened his grip on the blaster he held, and the pilot glanced at the other members, looking worried for their wellbeing. "All right everyone! Get back to your regularly scheduled day! Nothing more to see here!" Several people hesitated as they stared at Kylo, but a stern look from Luke cleared the area so that only Poe, Chewie, Leia, and the three other Force users remained.

She gently took Kylo's lightsaber from his hand to prevent him from doing anything rash with the weapon. A scowl crossed his face, but she put a hand on his half-healed shoulder to stop him from arguing. He turned to face his mother, and Rey stayed at his side in case she needed to intervene.

Leia had crossed the distance between them while the Resistance members had cleared out, and her expression softened as she drank in his scarred face. Rey wondered if she had seen Kylo without his mask since he had turned to the Dark Side as a teenager. If the Knight was in his late twenties or early thirties like she assumed, Leia had not been able to watch him grow into an adult.

The realization made Rey's heart ache as she watched Leia wrap her arms around his middle, her head pressing against his chest in a hug. Kylo looked like he would rather be anywhere else as he slowly pried her hands off of him. "Don't, general." He was careful not to call her 'mother,' but he was not disrespectful to go as far as to blatantly address her as 'Leia.'

Kylo took several steps back as he pulled her off of him, and Rey cleared her throat, glad that the Knight had not resorted to using the Force. "General Organa, I think it would be best if we called Kylo Ren by his preferred name. We did, after all, drag him here against his will."

"I can speak for myself, Rey," Kylo growled softly next to her. Rey glanced at him, seeing his arms crossed over his chest. "But I would suggest you move bases soon. The First Order will be looking for me, and we know where you're located." Rey did not miss that he still identified with the other organization in his wording choice.

Leia nodded once and glanced to Poe. "Alert Major Ematt to start preparations." The pilot hesitated but obeyed the general's orders and left the area. Leia looked back to her son, apparently having realized his wording as well. "You have not attempted to escape."

Kylo's mouth tightened as his dark eyes darted to Rey. "Something keeps distracting me." Rey had a feeling that he meant more than just her as she saw a flash of pain in his eyes. She suddenly realized that he had claimed he had not wanted to fully heal his injuries to conserve energy, but she wondered if he had full control of his Force powers with the torment in his mind.

Leia watched him with a shrewd eye, and when Rey concentrated on the Force, she could tell that the general knew about their developing relationship. She was, after all, Force-sensitive even without Jedi training. "You are welcome to anything we have here – aside from a Starfighter – but I would prefer that you are always in the company of Luke, Rey, or myself."

A smirk pulled at the side of Kylo's mouth. "Don't you trust me, _mother?_ " He almost sneered the last word toward her.

"No," Leia stated bluntly, "I do not with your affiliation with the First Order. But it is also for you; there are plenty of Resistance members who are not particularly fond of you, and I will not allow you to carry your lightsaber." Kylo began to protest almost as if he were a teenager again, but Leia held up her hand. "I will let it be known that you are not to be harmed. You will have no reason to need it unless Luke allows you to duel with Rey again."

()()()()

Rey sat with Kylo in the late afternoon in the cafeteria. It too early for most of the members to have dinner, so the room was empty. Leia had decided she would officially announce Kylo's presence during the meal, but they knew a crowded room of unfriendly people would likely not have the best outcome for both the Knight and the Resistance members.

Kylo drank his tea silently across from her, having refused any food while Rey ate hungrily. His tense body and dark clothing made him look out of place in the almost sterile feel of the room. He had not said a word to her since their spar, and she hesitated for several minutes before breaking their silence. "Asarla has not gained consciousness yet."

He met her eyes at this and gave a small nod. "I would not expect her to." He paused for a moment as he looked down at his drink. "I could not protect her from the Supreme Leader."

Rey's eyes widened in fear for her friend. "What happened to her?"

Kylo smiled bitterly at her and shook his head. "I don't think you want to know. It is better for her to rest; she is less accustomed to pain than I am."

Rey's eyes fell to the scar running across his cheek, and she recalled the dream the Force had sent her as he spoke of pain. "I had a vision about the night Evana died."

He tensed, and his grip on his cup tightened to the point where Rey was afraid he would break it. "And you finally believe I did not kill the Padawans."

She nodded and watched him closely, ready to stop if his anger rose any further. She got the feeling she should not push him further on the subject of Evana in particular. "I also had visions when I was at your house of you and your knights surrounded by bodies."

Kylo took a deep drink of his tea and paused for several long moments before responding. "Luke was able to continue training a few Padawans with some of the younglings." He stopped, and Rey remained silent to allow him to collect his thoughts. "I assume you also saw the men Kristofer had with him?" It took Rey a moment to realize the blonde boy that Kylo had killed was Kristofer. "I had been with the Knights of Ren for a few years when we found them. They were a clan dedicated to eradicating Force-sensitive children. They got to Luke's remaining Padawans and younglings before we arrived."

Rey remembered the red lightsaber protruding from the chest of a short man. "But you killed them?"

He nodded once and looked down, fidgeting with his cup. "I am not sure why I told you that… Only Luke and my knights know…"

Rey was about to reach out to touch his hand when he suddenly turned, his right hand shooting up to freeze a blaster bolt in the air that was aimed directly at his head. Rey immediately stood, clutching her lightsaber as she readied to fight the First Order. She did not expect to see three Resistance members standing at the door with their blasters aimed at the Knight. The one who had discharged the blast was frozen under Kylo's command, but the other two darted around their companion and fired simultaneously at the knight. Rey ran forward and deflected one blast with her lightsaber back into the wall.

She shoved one of the attackers back with the Force, but one of their blasts shot into her left side. The fire of pain clawed at her side, and Kylo let out a yell as she fell to the floor. He lost his concentration on the Force as he watched her, and the frozen blast shot forward square into Kylo's chest.

**AN: I watch a ridiculous number of videos of the characters and their actors to get a feel for their expressions and mannerisms. I did the same to see how a staff-type lightsaber is used, but there is not much footage of Darth Maul using a double-bladed lightsaber against only one opponent. I instead discovered a few choreographed duels that were just incredible. I grabbed some ideas mainly from School of Saberfighting's "Star Wars duel on Fencing World Championships" on YouTube. All props to the part where they swapped lightsabers goes to that video. I just thought it was so creative that I had to incorporate it. Go check it out if you feel so inclined; it's pretty fun to watch.**


	25. Chapter 25

A scream tore from Rey's throat as Kylo hit the floor. Adrenaline surged through her veins as she threw out her hand and shoved the three attackers against the wall with the Force before crawling over to the injured Knight. All thoughts of the wound on her side went out of her mind as she pressed a trembling hand to his neck, feeling a faint pulse through his skin.

She pulled him over onto his back and looked down at the angry wound marring his front just below his breast. It had missed his heart, but he was still bleeding profusely. Rey raised her hand and threw all of her compassion for Kylo behind her concentration of the Force. _Heal, you stubborn idiot._

She barely registered the sounds of running footsteps enter the room, and Poe's voice was at a curious distance through her focus. "Rey! What happen – _fuck._ " She could feel her energy draining from her as she willed the wound to heal. "Hey! We need a med droid in here! Rey, you can't do anything for… him…" Poe broke off, and Rey felt a grin coming to her face as his pale skin began knitting itself together.

She had not realized she had been crying until two tears dropped onto the newly formed jagged scar on his chest. Kylo's breathing strengthened as more people entered the room, and a medical droid came up beside her. It began examining her wound, but she shook her head and pointed at the unconscious Knight. "No, look at him first… It doesn't hurt…" The droid stared at her as its programming tried to make the decision to either follow her orders or help the most blatant injury in the room. Finally, it turned to Kylo, running a scanner over his body.

Poe grabbed her arm and pulled Rey away from Kylo. "You're bleeding, Rey."

She felt him press napkins to her side, and she looked up at the pilot, her vision starting to spin as the adrenaline began leaving her system. Her eyes darted over at the three men she had shoved against the wall, who were just beginning to regain consciousness from the impact. "They shot him."

Poe nodded and brushed hair out her face gently. "Yeah, I figured that out. He looks in better shape than you, though, thanks to whatever Force mojo you just did. Come on, let's get you to the infirmary."

"I can heal myself." She looked down at her wound and tried to concentrate on the Force when a wave of exhaustion passed over her.

Poe steadied her as she swayed. "Infirmary, miss all-powerful Jedi."

Rey shook her head and looked back at Kylo. "I need to make sure he's all right…"

Poe poked her shoulder, his hand red from her blood. "You can't help him anymore if you pass out from blood loss." Her shoulders slumped as she finally gave into the pilot, and she allowed him to help her to the infirmary. He grumbled as they walked the short distance down the hall. "Sheesh, you're worse than General Organa."

()()()()

Rey's eyes opened to Kylo lying in an infirmary bed next to hers. He must have shifted in his sleep for he lay halfway on his right side, and the thin beige blanket hung down across his shirtless stomach. The scar from his recent wound cut across his chest in a thin line.

She jumped as she heard Luke's voice from the end of her bed. "Rey." Rey looked up at the Jedi Master as he sat in a chair between hers and Kylo's bed. He gave her a soft smile. "Finn wanted me to let you know he was here for a while, but the staff forced him to go to bed."

She slowly sat up, expecting to feel pain shoot up her side. When there was none, she lifted up her tattered shirt, seeing only a pale line where she had been shot. "I healed you with the Force. You did a remarkable job on him. I did not know you had enough control over the Force to employ healing yet."

"That was the first time I tried." She frowned at Luke, crossing her arms over her chest as she realized what he had said. "You can Force heal, too? Why didn't you when I had my head wound? Or when I got injured in the X-Wing?"

The Jedi raised a hand to stop her before she could blurt out another question. "I am not comfortable healing head wounds – that skill is beyond me. When you were hurt in that battle, I thought I would allow you to heal at a natural pace and just focus on your Force training. Now, however, we must ensure you are at full health so that we can continue training."

Rey half listened to Luke's explanations as her eyes kept darting toward Kylo's sleeping form. "Has he woken?"

Luke's thick beard parted in a small smile as he glanced at Kylo. "He was awake earlier, but even with your healing, he hit his head pretty hard when he fell."

"But he'll recover? What about the attackers?" She looked longingly over at Kylo, wishing she could help him more.

Luke nodded and sighed softly. "They are in confinement for now." He paused for a moment as he glanced around the room. A few Resistance members milled around as they worked, and Rey noticed a few near the door who held blasters to guard the room. "All three are members of the infirmary staff who had seen too many people die from Kylo Ren's influence."

Rey kept her eyes on the warrior in question. His expression looked innocent and peaceful in his sleep. "There's still good in him, Master."

The Jedi inclined his head slightly. "There is good in everyone, but Snoke has been twisting his mind for years to eradicate the Light."

Rey pulled her knees to her chest, her jaw setting in determination. "Kylo's stronger than you think. Maybe being away from him for a while will help."

Luke stood and began to leave, indicating that their conversation was over. "We can only hope." Rey could not tell if the Jedi Master believed the Knight was capable of recovering from Snoke's influence.

Rey remained on the bed to watch Kylo and pulled the blanket around her shoulders. She only waited a few minutes before the Knight began twitching in his sleep, his body trembling as he muttered something unintelligible. She moved over to him, shaking his shoulder to draw him from his dreams.

Kylo's dark eyes snapped open, and his hand closed around her throat for several terrifying moments before he relaxed and relinquished his hold. Rey stepped away from him in shock, her eyes wide as she rubbed her neck. Kylo shut his own eyes for a moment and ran his hand through his hair, his torso shaking as he took a shuddering breath. "I apologize… I did not recognize you for a moment."

Rey watched him from a safe distance, suddenly wondering where her lightsaber had gone after the attack. "Nightmares?"

Kylo gave a slight nod and looked back up at her as he sat up. "Something like that." He paused as he noticed her starting at the fresh scar on his chest. "I seem to be getting shot more often since you've been around."

Rey sat at the end of the bed, feeling guilt clenching at her chest. "Am I too much of a distraction for you?"

He watched her with an unreadable expression and pressed his hand to the left side of his head. Rey remembered Luke's comment that he had hit his head hard on the floor. She wondered how the injury would affect his mental state. "You're an… intriguing distraction." The sides of his mouth twitched in amusement. "Although you have an annoying habit of kissing me to prevent me from doing some things."

She scoffed in fake offence. "'Annoying'? You've always seemed to like it."

Kylo crossed his arms in an almost childish gesture. "You just keep doing it until I reciprocate or you sedate me."

Rey shrugged and smirked. "If I recall correctly, _you_ started it that night in your house."

He was silent for a moment and was saved from responding as Leia entered with her brother. "We will be evacuating within the next few hours onto a cruiser. I would like you two to take a separate shuttle with our Togruta guest to avoid any provocations with others."

Rey nodded and took her long lightsaber hilt from Luke as he handed it to her along with Kylo's. The general's gaze rested on her son, her eyes moving to his new scar. Rey could read motherly concern on her face. "I am sorry you were attacked. We can of course find you some extra clothes to wear."

Kylo's back straightened to give the impression of strength, but Rey could see his right hand trembling slightly where it rested on the bed. She wondered if the nightmare she had woken him from had to do with Snoke's torture. "I would appreciate it."

()()()()

Rey flipped the switches in the tiny shuttle and glanced at Kylo as he pressed the final button to allow them to take off. The shuttle lurched as she guided it off the ground and into the D'Qar atmosphere. The cruiser that the Resistance was retreating to was located only a short hyperspace distance away – for they did not want their cruiser so near a potential target planet – so Leia had allowed them to fly the shuttle themselves with Major Ematt and two other trusted Resistance members as guards. Asarla, who was still unconscious, lay across the only three seats in the shuttle.

Kylo had received a simple black shirt that covered his arms and exposed his neck, and he had donned a black jacket that looked suspiciously like one Han might have chosen to wear. He had kept his black pants and boots that he had been wearing when she had captured him, and his black helmet rested behind his seat.

She supposed she should not have been surprised to find that Kylo knew how to pilot some ships. She guessed that he had learned during his Jedi training under Luke or at least after he had left the Jedi path. He was only allowed to co-pilot because the Resistance could not spare anyone else trained to fly to accompany them.

The shuttle left the atmosphere, and Rey flipped another switch before pulling down on one of the levers to push their vessel into hyperspace. The stars seemed to lengthen for a moment before they shot forward at full speed. She checked the coordinates of their destination. "We should arrive in just under ten minutes."

Rey relaxed against her seat, feeling her lightsaber at her leg. She had fashioned a small leather belt of sorts to fit around her right thigh that held her long hilt fairly comfortably and allowed her to grab it at a moment's notice. She had Kylo's lightsaber at her hip for safekeeping.

She looked behind her shoulder to ask Major Ematt how big the Resistance cruiser was and let out a short gasp. The two Resistance guards lay dead on the floor, and the major was in the air, clawing at an invisible force closing his throat. Rey immediately turned to Kylo, but the Knight only glanced at her in confusion before he twisted to see what she was staring at.

He reacted faster than she as he jumped out of the chair and tackled Asarla to the floor. The Togruta was very much awake and fought viciously under Kylo, using the Force to push his heavier weight off of her. She sat up on the floor, and Rey, who was halfway over to her, froze as she felt the Dark Side coming off of her in stronger waves than it usually came off of Kylo.

Asarla's usually caring and innocent blue eyes were clouded in an unnatural golden hue. She glared at Rey in hatred that did not belong on her kind face and lunged at her with abnormal speed. Rey fell to the floor and kicked at the Togruta to push her off. The small, orange-red hand snatched Kylo's lightsaber from her hip as she rolled away.

The red blade crackled to life, and Asarla turned, calmly finishing off the gasping Major Ematt with a hard swipe across the chest. She turned her eerie eyes to Kylo as he stood, raising his right hand to freeze her with the Force. The Togruta froze for only a moment before she seemed to push past his power. The red lightsaber moved to point at Kylo's pale throat. Her musical voice had a disturbing undertone of hate. "The Supreme Leader has shown me all of your tricks, traitor."

"Asarla!" Rey cried out to distract the Togruta. Her double blades unsheathed from her lightsaber. "You're not dark! You're not a killer! We're your friends!"

The awful golden eyes moved to bore into Rey's. "A friend who leaves me to face torture alone? A friend who does not fight to protect me? All I see is the Supreme Leader's talented student turned into a traitor because of _you._ "

Rey remembered that Luke had mentioned their attackers were infirmary staff, which had been where Asarla had been for the past day. Her voice was small as she looked at what her friend had become. "You convinced them to try to kill Kylo, didn't you?"

The laugh Asarla gave was harsh. "It didn't take much convincing. They didn't even know I was conscious. All I needed to do was plant the idea that he's a threat to you all." The red lightsaber shifted from Kylo's throat to slash through the navigation system on the pilot's console. Rey was in too much shock to stop her. Kylo moved behind the Togruta quietly as she continued speaking. "And now when you do not show up to the Resistance, Kylo Ren will of course be blamed for kidnapping you. It's a shame you won't be able to _help_ him when the Supreme Leader teaches him where his loyalties lie."

Rey watched Asarla in despair and reached out to her with the Force, trying to get into the Togruta's mind to stop her or push her unconscious as Kylo had to her a few times. A sneer formed on Asarla's dark lips as she shoved Rey back with the Force.

Rey fell to the floor, her lightsaber clattering away. Asarla raised the red lightsaber over her with the full intention of killing her. Before she could deliver the blow, the Togruta fell forward onto the floor unconscious. Kylo stood behind her, holding the butt of one of the dead Resistance member's blaster in front of him.


	26. Chapter 26

Kylo took his lightsaber from Asarla's hand and knelt down beside her, examining the Togruta. Rey got to her feet, her hands trembling as she held her hand out for her own lightsaber. "What happened to her?"

He shook his head, his dark eyes looking up at her. "I'm not sure. I thought she was only being tortured." His jaw clenched as he stared down at Asarla again. "She's certainly not doing this out of her own free will."

Rey turned to the pilot's controls and sighed, slowly pushing up a lever to pull them out of hyperspace. "We overshot our stop, and the navigation controls are gone." She looked back at Kylo when he did not respond and watched as he pulled off one of his gloves to press two fingers to Asarla's neck. As his bare skin touched the Togruta, he fell back as if he had been shocked. He looked down at his hand with a strange expression and then let out a horrible scream.

Rey ran to him in alarm and dropped to her knees in front of him as he shut his eyes. She reached out to touch his shoulder tentatively and spoke quietly so as not to anger or panic him. "Kylo?"

A softer yell escaped his lips, and the Knight's face twisted with pain. His eyes opened to her, and Rey read indescribable agony in the dark depths as he gasped out, "He's furious…"

She immediately realized that Asarla was under Snoke's control, and somehow when he had touched her, the Supreme Leader's influence had invaded his mind again. Without thinking, Rey wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close, intertwining her fingers in Kylo's dark hair. His forehead rested against her shoulder, and she could feel him trembling against her as he groaned softly in pain.

Even the several times he had been shot around her, she had never seen him express this much pain. Physically, he could handle a great deal, but mentally, he was vulnerable. Rey's heart ached as she knew that she could not do much for him except hold him as he endured. She realized he had likely experienced more acute pain in Snoke's actual presence, and he had not had anyone to help him.

His gloved hand had fallen onto her arm, and she felt his grip tighten on her for a moment. Rey paused as she remembered his invasion of her mind on the Starkiller Base. Slowly, she reached out with the Force toward his mind and slowly entered it. Mental fire – for that was the best she could describe it as – raged at her among the confusion of thoughts. She experienced his torment and anger, and flashes of his memories with her continuously came to her mind. She could feel rage inside herself at Snoke for torturing his already fragile mind, and she shoved back at the pain with as much of the Force as she could.

She distantly felt Kylo's trembling subside, and she left his mind before she invaded anything private. He was still leaning against her but lifted his head as she left his mind. His dark eyes searched her face for a moment, his expression a mix of relief and confusion. "How did you…?"

Rey shook her head and brought the hand that had been interlaced in his hair to press gently against the scarred side of his face. "I'm not sure… I…"

Kylo cut off the rest of her explanation by pressing his lips against hers. He kissed her desperately, and Rey could sense his gratitude through the Force as she kissed him back. Several minutes passed before he finally pulled away, and she looked into his pale face, frowning as she noticed that her hand had left streaks of red on his face. She glanced down at her fingers and finally realized that her hand had been in his hair, and he was the one who was bleeding.

Kylo frowned and pressed his own hand to his head. It, too, came away with fresh blood. He looked at it with an almost strange fascination. "That would explain why I can't concentrate…"

She pulled part of his hair back gently to look at the wound, seeing blood dripping slowly down to his ear. The fact that he did not stop her told her he was not thinking as clearly as usual. "Has it been bleeding since the attack?"

He finally pulled her hand away from his head and shifted his hair back over the wound. "No. I must have reopened it against the wall when Asarla pushed me off." He glanced at the unconscious Togruta before looking back at her, seeming to not notice or mind that they were still sitting close on the floor. "Are the communication systems still working?"

Rey moved away from him regretfully as she looked at the console, trying not to let her thoughts linger too long on their kiss. The lightsaber had cut through over half of the controls. "No, and I have no idea where we are."

Kylo peered through the shuttle's window, pressing his hand to his head briefly again. Rey saw they had traveled near a planet with large green landmasses and swirling yellow clouds. "If I'm right, that's Felucia, so we're still in the Outer Rim."

Rey checked to make sure they could still control the shuttle and breathed a sigh of relief as it turned toward the planet at her command. "Is Felucia habited?"

Kylo leaned against the co-pilot's chair, fingering the lightsaber that now hung at his hip. "It's mostly unsettled, but fortunately for us, one of the Knights of Ren lives there."

()()()()

Trees covered nearly every square meter of Felucia. Rey watched in wonder from the co-pilot's chair as Kylo eased the vessel over the treetops and slowly into a small clearing. The landscape reminded her of the planet Maz Kanata's castle, but as they stepped down the ramp, the humidity like she had never experienced enveloped her in an unbreakable web.

She held onto his black helmet with one hand and her lightsaber in the other while Kylo had his lightsaber at his right hip and one of the blasters on the other side. Kylo carried Asarla carefully in his arms as he led Rey around the side of the shuttle. For a moment, she thought the Knight was going to lead her into the surrounding forest, but she soon gasped softly as she saw where they were headed.

Woven into and around the trees was a small dwelling. Six large trees made up the exterior, and Rey could see carvings of stairs wind up one of the trunks to end at a cloth-covered door. Branches from each tree wove through each other to make natural windows. Rey guessed the house was about three stories tall.

Kylo climbed the stairs and stopped at a small landing at the top. Rey realized what she had taken for a cloth door was actually textured metal that stood next to a small display. Kylo shifted to support Asarla's legs with the back of his forearm before his pressed his palm to the display. It flickered green as it registered him, and Rey heard a male's voice through the display. "Ren? Where the hell have you been?"

The textured door parted in the middle as both sides slid open, and Rey stepped inside behind Kylo. The small, round entrance hall gave off a woody scent from the trees, and Rey guessed the wooden walls were reinforced with steel. An open archway stood on the left almost opposite the entrance, and another opened to more carved, wooden stairs.

A man Rey presumed was the Knight descended down the last few stairs and approached them. He was around her height with close cropped, light brown hair. He wore all black, and Rey noticed his movements were that of a warrior's, like Kylo. His blue eyes widened as he saw his fellow Knight with the two women. "You couldn't give me a fair warning, Ren?"

Kylo gave a small laugh and shook his head. "I'm afraid I couldn't. The communications in my shuttle were damaged."

"You've been off the grid for over a week. We weren't sure what happened to you after we found Acamar and Nesan at your home." A dark expression crossed the Knight's face. "We didn't know what happened, so we decided to lie low for a while until we found you. Hux killed them, didn't he?"

Kylo nodded once and glanced down at the Togruta in his arms. "Let me lie her down, and I can tell you and the others."

Rey walked beside Kylo as he followed the Knight toward the open archway. The blue-eyed man glanced back at her as they walked. "Two girlfriends, Ren? I didn't think you had the time."

She watched Kylo roll his eyes, and she felt his demeanor relax with his friend. They entered a small room with a few chairs and couches that rested around a cooling unit. Rey decided the slight chill in the air was preferable to the humidity. Kylo lay Asarla down on one of the couches and took a seat on one adjacent to it. Rey tentatively sat next to him, keeping a respectable distance from Kylo. "Rey, this is Ragnos."

The Knight grinned and held out a hand. His grip was tight as she shook it. "Call me Avin." He winked at her, and Rey got the impression she was meeting another Poe Dameron. "You're too pretty to be hanging around this scarred mongrel."

Kylo's eyes narrowed as he leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. His voice hardened into one of a commanding officer's. "She gave me the scar, Ragnos. And I would ask you not to speak of me in such a way."

Avin held up his hands in surrender, but his eyes lingered on Rey. "Sorry, sorry, Ren. You burst into my house unannounced. Forgive me if my tongue slips a little."

Kylo's mouth tightened slightly, but he gave a slight nod. "Just go contact the others. See how quickly they can get here; I don't want anyone to be able to spy on our meeting."

Avin ducked out of the room, and Kylo glanced at Rey. "You should contact the Resistance so they can pick you up."

She frowned at this and glanced at Asarla. "What about you and Asarla?"

Kylo clasped his hands together. "I am not a member of the Resistance, nor do I agree with what they are doing. I will not go back with you."

Rey scowled as she shook her head. "You're going to go back to the First Order? After what Snoke did to you?"

He hesitated for a long moment. "I will remain with my Knights until we take care of Hux. But yes, I will return to the Supreme Leader. He is the only one I can learn from."

She moved closer to him, shaking her head again as she resisted the urge to slap his foolish face. "You can learn from others! From old manuscripts! Hell, why do you need to learn more at all? You're already a master with lightsaber combat, and your Force powers are unmatched!" Her voice rose steadily in her fury at his ridiculous decision. "You'll be hurt far worse than you were on the shuttle, especially since Snoke won't believe your loyalty until you kill me, and I don't plan on that happening anytime soon!"

Rey was ready to admit that she cared about Kylo too much to watch him willingly walk into more torture. What in the galaxy was he thinking? He might still be in denial of their developing relationship, but she could not believe how selfish he was being. They were irrevocably connected now; anything he did would affect her no matter how much he tried to leave her out of things. She did not care if he remained with the Dark Side, just as long as he never voluntarily went back for more of that mental agony they had shared together on the shuttle.

Kylo stared at her with wide eyes, his expression unreadable. Rey wondered if he was reconsidering his decision because of her words or if he was planning the most painful way to kill her with the objects available to him with a short reach. Before he could respond, she decided that he needed to know that he would be giving her up if he freely went back to Snoke.

Rey pressed her lips against his and hooked her finger around the neck of his shirt, pulling him closer to her. She kissed him hard and passionately, trying to convey her fury and compassion for him. Kylo responded by kissing back just as roughly, and she sensed a hint of self-loathing through the Force. His hands moved up to either side of her neck, and she tangled her hand in his hair again. He pressed her slowly back against the couch, and Rey moved her free hand on his chest, feeling his hard muscles through his thin shirt as she slowly slid it down. Her hand maneuvered underneath his shirt, grabbing onto his side just above his hip.

A throat cleared behind them, and Avin's voice sounded uncomfortable as they finally parted their lips. "Er… Ah, everyone should be here by morning, Ren." The Knight paused, and although Rey could not see him past Kylo, she imagined him holding his hands nervously. "…You two can have a guest room if you like…?"

Rey felt Kylo's side tremble as he suppressed a laugh. "Thank you, Ragnos." She got the impression that the two Knights were close friends. That, or else Kylo had caught Avin in the same situation at least once. Probably both, she decided.

She heard Avin practically flee the room, and Kylo kissed her briefly, his voice a low whisper. "You are far too distracting."

**AN: What's this? A lighthearted ending to a chapter? Thanks for reading!**


	27. Chapter 27

Kylo kissed Rey slowly for only a moment before he pulled himself off the couch. She shivered slightly at the absence of his warm body and sat up, frowning at him. "Don't you want to continue?"

The Knight glanced back at her, the right side of his mouth slipping up into a half smile. "Well, yes, but I should be more alert when everyone arrives." His tongue slipped into view briefly as he licked his lips.

Rey sighed and nodded, pressing her fingertips to her mouth before a moment. She could still taste Kylo's lips on hers. He did not seem at all embarrassed by Avin Ragnos walking in on them, but truthfully, she was. She had just met the man, and she was not sure if she could meet his blue eyes the next time she saw him. However, it had been necessary to show Kylo that his decision to return to the First Order was ridiculous. "You can't deny what's going on between us. Snoke will hurt you because of me."

Kylo's smile disappeared as he scowled and crossed his arms. "I cannot turn back to the Light, Rey, as much as you seem to believe I can. My Force training is not complete."

He pressed his hand to where his head wound was for a moment, and Rey watched him with growing anger. She stood, about to begin their argument again, when she heard a female's voice growl, "No. It's not."

Rey's head immediately snapped to the source of the voice, and she held her lightsaber tightly as Asarla stood. The Togruta's eyes were still an eerie gold that flashed in the light, and she stared at the two like a predator would its prey.

Rey took a step toward her, and Asarla's small hand rose. She felt a familiar pressure around her as the Force froze her, and she fought back against it with all her concentration. The pressure only seemed to increase as she fought, and Asarla let out a bark of a laugh. "Your powers are useless without the Dark Side to assist you."

She could only move her eyes, and they followed her friend's frightening gaze to Kylo. The Knight stood with his right hand raised, and his jaw clenched as he focused on freezing the Togruta. Even with Asarla's attention divided, Kylo was struggling to stop her from moving. His left hand curled into a fist, and Rey watched the color leave his hand as his nails dug viciously into his palm. Blood began welling around his fingers, and he managed to shove Asarla backwards against the couch with the Force.

Rey felt the Force release her, and she took a few steps forward as she stumbled. Kylo stalked past her and stood over Asarla, his fist still clenched as blood slowly began to drip from his hand. The Togruta stared up at him, her dark lips curling back into a sneer as she got back to her feet. "That's right. Use your pain to fuel the Dark Side."

Her orange-red hand shot up and grabbed Kylo's neck before he could stop her. The grip was not tight, but upon the contact, the Knight's eyes rolled back. His lips parted in a soundless scream, and Rey let out a shout. She threw her hands out and pushed Asarla backwards with all her power. The Togruta flew back into the wooden wall, and Kylo crumpled to the floor, gasping as his hand moved to where Asarla had touched him.

Rey ran over to him and knelt beside Kylo, looking up as Asarla's cruel laugh echoed throughout the room. "You dance on the Dark Side with your emotions, _girl._ "

She shook her head desperately and pushed forward with the Force, trying to remain as selfless as possible as Luke had told her as she entered Asarla's mind. Rey sensed the stifling power of the Dark Side clouding everything that made the Togruta an individual. She knew the touch of the Dark in her was different than in Kylo's mind. While he practiced the Dark Side and used it to supplement and amplify his power, he still retained his own thoughts, decisions, and personality. It was as if Asarla's consciousness had been stamped to the back of her mind, and the Dark Side - Snoke - controlled her body.

Rey tried to push the power away from her friend's mind as she had with Kylo, but let out a deafening yell as she felt the Dark Side strike back at her own mind with a sharp probe. She tried to retain her control over the Light Side of the Force as she fought back against the invasion, but she felt tendrils of the Dark beginning to seep everywhere inside her head. Memories of her childhood on Jakku jumped through her mind in a confusion of moments: Unkar Plutt grasping her arm, the terrible fall she had suffered when scavenging through the wreckage of a Star Destroyer at ten years old, the numerous times she had used her staff to defend herself against the pigs that frequently visited the Niima Outpost…

She shut her eyes tightly and began to feel the Dark taking her consciousness as it had Asarla when she sensed a familiar presence at the edge of her mind. Kylo's own dark powers enveloped the overwhelming invasion in her mind and shoved it out. Rey sucked in a gasp of air as she opened her eyes, watching Kylo and Asarla staring intensely at each other, the Force thick in the air as they struggled mentally for control. The Knight grimaced as he focused on the Togruta, and Rey somehow knew he would not win the fight.

She took a deep breath to ready herself and invaded Asarla's mind again, feeling her consciousness brush against Kylo's as she entered with the Force. The Dark Side was overwhelming from both users, but Rey held on desperately to the Light as she pushed back to free Asarla's mind. Her eyes slid shut as her control over the Light and Kylo's command of the Dark seemed to meld together. They struggled for several long minutes before their combined strength thrust the darkness from the Togruta's mind.

()()()()

Rey's eyes flickered open, and she found herself lying on the floor next to Kylo. The Knight's hand was on her shoulder, and it twitched as he woke beside her, his dark eyes coming into view as his eyelids fluttered for a moment. He pulled his hand slowly off of her as he pushed himself up to a sitting position.

"Uhhh…. Ren?" Avin's voice sounded from behind them, and Rey pulled herself onto the nearby couch. "Why the hell are you sleeping on my floor? I really did mean it when you could have a guest room."

Kylo ran a hand through his black hair as he stood, glancing over at the other Knight as he moved to where Asarla lay against the wall. "I didn't really intend to be on the floor, Ragnos."

When Kylo did not expand on his comment, a scowl came to Avin's fair colored face. "I know you are my superior, but this is my house, Ren, and you came with two guests without any warning. I think I deserve a better answer."

Kylo let out a long sigh and crossed his arms over his chest from where he stood over Asarla. "My assistant was being controlled. Rey and I were using the Force to free her when we passed out."

At the mention of the Force, Avin rolled his eyes. Rey noticed he now carried a rounded blaster at his hip, and his pale hand brushed over it. "The fucking Force rears its ugly head again, then? I thought you were the only person who could use it since the Jedi were killed." Rey realized with a sense of satisfaction that she had been right to assume Kylo was the only member of the Knights of Ren able to use the Force.

Kylo grunted and knelt next to Asarla, tentatively pressing his bare hand against the Togruta's skin. When he appeared to feel no pain at the contact, he checked her pulse and picked her small frame up, moving her to the couch she had been lying on before. "Time has passed since then, Ragnos. Other people are Force-sensitive. I would not expect someone untrained in the Force to understand." His voice hardened with his last sentence, clearly indicating he did not want to speak anymore of the subject.

Avin gave a short huff and then shook his head. "Fine, Ren. I came because Calfan is almost here. And I picked up some X-Wings entering the atmosphere on my scanners."

Kylo tensed and glanced at Rey, running his left hand through his hair in agitation. Dried blood flaked off his hand with the movement, leaving some dark specs on his long face. "Your Resistance friends are coming. I suggest you go with them."

Rey shook her head, her eyes darting to Asarla's slim figure on the couch. She moved to stand in front of Kylo, suddenly acutely aware of their height difference as she glared up at him. "Not without you and Asarla." She set her jaw in determination and found herself moving up on her toes to try to appear more menacing. Irritation rose up in her as he still towered several inches over her.

A smirk pulled at his lips as he noticed her attempt to close the distance between their heights. His dark eyes turned to Avin, who was watching them with a fascinated expression. "Go greet Calfan and allow the X-Wings to land. They won't be here long."

Avin continuously looked back at them as he reluctantly left the room, and Kylo turned back to her. She leaned forward to try to kiss him and distract him once again, but he saw her predictable move coming and held up his hand, forcing her lips to brush against his calloused palm. "Not this time, Rey."

She scowled and batted his hand away, seeing him glaring down at her. "Stop denying your feelings for me! Come back to the Resistance and help Luke train me."

"The only way I am going back to the Resistance is if you sedate me again, and I know you don't have any of those syringes with you." He began moving toward Asarla as she stirred on the couch. "Since you're worried about Ms. Tano, I will return her to Kiros before I meet with the First Order."

Rey grabbed his arm and pulled him back to look at her. Before he could say anything else, she slapped him hard across the face. "Why don't you realize that Snoke will just go after her? She's Force-sensitive, and even though you've been protecting her for a while, he knows about her now! He'll want anyone with our abilities to manipulate into his will, or he'll kill her like he's trying to get you to do to me."

Her hand throbbed as he stared at her in disbelief. The hand with dried blood came up to touch where she had slapped him, and she knew he was more shocked than hurt. "I told you once that you have no idea what I am trying to accomplish. You still do not." He paused as she heard voices in the entrance hall. "Stop questioning my decisions."

Kylo looked up as Avin entered the room with another black-clothed Knight. A helmet covered his face, and he stood a few inches shorter than Avin. He wore a loose tunic that ended just over tight fitting pants, which tucked into knee-high boots. Black gloves clutched a staff taller than Kylo, and a black cowl was pulled over the helmet as a hood and was wrapped around the Knight's neck to cover what would be the man's mouth of the helmet.

"Ah, Ren. Ragnos here was just telling me about your girlfriend." The voice that came through the helmet was muffled and distorted. Rey barely heard Kylo's protest against a girlfriend as she watched one of the Knight's gloved hand reach up and pull off the cowl. It draped across his shoulders, and the helmet slid off with a click.

It struck Rey as odd that she had assumed the newcomer was a male, for a young woman perhaps a few years older than her stared coolly at them. Her skin was dark like Finn's, and her black hair was pulled back into a tight bun. Her voice was a low alto as she spoke again, the helmet hanging at her side in a loose grip. "You may be able to defeat me in a sparring match, Ren, but you should know better than to lie to me. Who's the girl?"

Kylo's back straightened as she accused him of lying, and Rey decided she could speak for herself rather than being treated like she was not present. "'The girl' is Rey. I'm assuming you're Calfan?"

The woman gave a nod and examined her for a moment. "A lightsaber. I see why Ren likes you, then."

Kylo rolled his dark eyes next to Rey and seemed to decide to evade the subject altogether as he directed his gaze to Avin. "How far out are those X-Wings?"

The tree-constructed house gave a shudder as the deafening roars of the said Starfighters flew past and doubled back over them. Avin shrugged, glancing toward the archway that led to the entrance hall. "I'd say not far at all."

Rey pushed past the three Knights and ran out onto the carved stairs of the house, seeing four X-Wings landing smoothly next to their damaged shuttle and the small ship Calfan had brought. The Blue Squadron.

Poe Dameron jumped out of the first Starfighter, his orange pilot's uniform contrasting starkly with the surrounding green forest. Rey vaguely sensed Kylo trailing after her as she descended the stairs to move toward the Resistance fighters.

Poe slipped off his orange and white helmet and grinned at her, throwing his arms around her in a brotherly hug. "Rey! You're all right!" His expression darkened as he spotted Kylo behind her, and his hand moved to a blaster strapped to his leg. "I knew I was right not to trust _him_ to co-pilot with you. Apparently he wasn't smart enough to take out the tracking beacon."

Rey shook her head quickly and grabbed Poe's hand, feeling something small in his pocket as she brushed her hand against his hip. "He didn't try to kidnap me. It's a long story, Poe." She glanced back at Kylo, who was holding his lightsaber hilt tightly.

Poe shrugged out of her hand and drew the blaster, holding it up. "Sure looks like he did. He even has some friends with him." Avin and Calfan approached them with helmets covering both of their faces. Poe's brown eyes glanced down at her as the other three pilots of the Squadron approached, each holding their own blasters. "Please don't tell me you have feelings for that monster. I saw what you did on the Star Destroyer, but I thought that was just a ploy."

Rey hesitated as she thought back to everything Poe had witnessed between her and Kylo. There was no fooling him. He had seen her kissing him during their rescue mission, and she had practically been sobbing over him when the Knight had been shot. The pilot was certainly not an idiot, or he would not be a commander in the Resistance.

Poe noticed her hesitation, and Rey saw his finger moving to the trigger of the blaster. "He's manipulating you, Rey. Get behind me."

She remembered that Finn had mentioned his escape with Poe; the pilot had been a victim of Kylo's torture. No wonder he did not trust the former Jedi. Before Rey could stop him, Poe pulled the trigger.


	28. Chapter 28

The red lightsaber crackled to life and spun in Kylo's hand as the blast deflected off it and shot into a line of trees. His free hand rose, and Rey felt the Force close around the pilot to freeze him in place. The two other Knights of Ren moved to flank their leader, and Kylo was forced to deflect the blaster fire of the other three Blue Squadron members. Avin fired back at the pilots with his blaster, but they were quick to duck behind their X-Wings.

Rey reached into Poe's pocket and slipped out the small object she had felt, placing it into her own before she unsheathed her staff lightsaber. "Stop!"

She was unsurprised when neither side listened to her shout, and she blocked Avin's shot at Poe. Calfan used her staff to deflect shots almost as well as a lightsaber, freeing Kylo to let him raise his hand again and begin choking Poe.

Rey jumped at the head Knight, unintentionally using the Force to aid her distance and strength. Their lightsabers hissed as they met for a brief moment before Rey's momentum knocked Kylo to the ground. Their hilts clattered as they both dropped them, and Rey struggled to pin him as he tried to roll out from under her. She held him down for only a moment before his knee swept up and smashed into her stomach.

Rey gasped as the air was knocked out of her, and Kylo held his hand out for his lightsaber. She rolled off of him and found herself just a few feet from both discarded hilts. She reached her own hand out for them when a dark boot pressed down on the hilts. Both weapons shook under the Force as she and Kylo tried to retrieve their weapons, but they held under the boot.

Rey's gaze moved up the slim leg and over a thin body to the unimpressed expression of Asarla staring down at her. The Togruta's eyes had returned to their normal, deep blue hue, and she stood with her orange-red arms crossed over her slight frame. "I'm unconscious for a few hours, and you two manage to get into another fight."

The lightsabers ceased trembling under her boot, and she moved it off of them, pulling both into her own small hands with the Force. Rey could not help but feel irritation as she stood; it had taken her several days to fully control moving small objects such as lightsabers, but Asarla had moved them with ease.

The fighting around them stopped at the addition of the newcomer. The four pilots and two other Knights stared at the three Force users warily, ready to snap back into action. Rey took a step toward the Togruta, her eyes wide as she studied her. The white pigments accenting her face looked almost faded as the blue eyes flicked between Rey and Kylo, and she could see exhaustion written in her expression. "Asarla. How… How are you feeling?"

A bitter smile pulled at the dark lips. "A little more in control than the past week, thanks to you and Lord Ren." Rey had wondered if she would remember what had happened, and she guessed that Asarla had basically been a prisoner in her own mind while the darkness had consumed her.

Kylo moved to stand next to Rey, and he stared at Asarla with a strange expression. She realized that she had forgotten to focus on the Force in her shock at seeing the Togruta standing and talking normally. Asarla's and Kylo's emotions washed over her as she reached out with the Force to sense them. With Kylo, she sensed a surprising pity directed toward Asarla among the power of the Dark Side that always seemed to diffuse from him. The Togruta radiated exhaustion and pain, and while her power was not as strong as Kylo's, she could detect the taint of the Dark Side emanating from her in addition to the Knight.

Rey turned as she heard someone clear their throat pointedly, and she saw that Poe and Avin had come to stand a few feet from them, each clutching their blasters. Calfan held her staff out to prevent the other three pilots from approaching. Poe spoke first, his brown eyes narrowed at Kylo. "Anyone want to catch us up?"

()()()()

The Knights of Ren and the Resistance pilots stood in a semicircle on the pavement facing Rey, Kylo, and Asarla. Avin and Poe kept a noticeable difference between each other as Rey explained what had happened to their shuttle. She had wanted to speak with the pilots alone and let Kylo talk with the two Knights, but Poe had refused, saying that he did not want Ren lying to the Knights or planning a surprise attack on them.

The tension between the two groups, and between Poe and Kylo especially, was thicker than the intense humidity on the planet. It did not help that Kylo kept running his hand over his lightsaber with impatience as Rey told the story, but at least he was keeping his temper down long enough for her to finish.

"And the dark thing that was in you, Asarla? It's gone now?" Poe watched the Togruta carefully, as if he was afraid she would explode.

Asarla paused, her musical voice quiet as her thin shoulders shrugged. "Yes… and no. It's not controlling me anymore." Rey realized her already small body had lost a lot of weight in the time since they left Kiros. Her stomach knotted in guilt as she realized she was responsible for dragging the Togruta into the mess, for leaving her with the First Order to be tortured and consumed by the Dark Side, and for destroying her wishes to stay out of the war.

"Because of Rey." Poe grinned proudly at her, and Rey shook her head as she saw Kylo's fingers tighten on his lightsaber.

"Because of Kylo Ren." Rey corrected him. "It almost got me, too, until he helped."

The commander's grin faded as he met Kylo's dark eyes. "Right. The asshole who fucked with my mind and took you hostage actually helped you. He only helped because he wants to be the only master of the Dark Side and couldn't stand to see someone potentially more powerful than him. Can't you see he's manipulating you, Rey?"

Fury rose up in Rey's chest, and she could sense Kylo's as well. They both were about to start shouting when Asarla pipped up again, her voice stronger than before. "I thought we decided to explain what happened to avoid bloodshed. I don't think accusing each other is going to end well."

Rey's anger diffused at her words, but Kylo still fumed beside her. He spoke in a growl before she had a chance to stop him. "I've been in your mind because you were too idiotic not to give me the information I needed, _pilot._ But because of that, I know your deepest secrets. Shall I divulge them to your squad?"

Rey glanced at Avin and Calfan, who tensed to help their leader should he need it. The other pilots did the same, but Rey knew they would not stand a chance with the three Knights so close in range. Poe glared at Kylo, his fists clenching in anger. "Don't you dare mess with Rey. I know she's developed a soft spot for you, but you're too enthralled to the _Supreme Leader_ to return any – "

Poe's voice cut off as his rose into the air by his throat, Kylo's pale hand following him up as he used the Force. The two Knights jumped forward to defend their superior from the other pilots, but Asarla grabbed both of their shoulders. Rey sensed the Force from the Togruta, and Calfan followed Avin to the ground as they fell unconscious. Rey darted forward and jammed the syringe she had stolen from Poe's pocket into Kylo's neck. She knew there was no other way to calm the Knight down without her usual method, which would just infuriate Poe even more.

"Dammit, Rey. Someday you're not going to have that to fall back on," Kylo growled as the pilot dropped heavily to the ground. The Knight's eyelids flickered closed for a moment. He was stronger and psychologically in better shape than he had been on the Star Destroyer, and she could sense him using as much of the Force as he could muster to keep himself conscious.

She glanced to see that Poe was still gasping for air on the ground and definitely not watching them before she pressed her lips to Kylo's. His focus faltered, and Rey supported him by the shoulder and abdomen as he began to fall. He was not quite unconscious when she whispered in his ear, "It's for your own good."

Rey pulled his limp arm over her shoulder just as she had on the Star Destroyer and looked to the four pilots. She was not sure if Jessika Pava had seen what she had done to distract Kylo yet again, but the female pilot watched her distrustfully. She quickly nodded to the ship that Calfan had taken, which looked fairly similar, if not smaller than the command shuttle she had ridden in when Kylo had taken her hostage. "Let's get back to the Resistance."

Poe stood, rubbing his neck as he glanced down at the two unconscious Knights. "What about his friends? They're too dangerous."

Temmin scowled at Kylo's unconscious form. "They're all too dangerous. It'd be better for the Resistance if we just kill them all and be done with it." Rey realized that Temmin, too, held a grudge against Kylo for capturing him and Poe during the battle that seemed like a lifetime ago.

She shook her head vehemently, and Asarla stood in front of Avin and Calfan. Even small and unarmed, the Togruta looked dangerous, especially after her brush with the Dark Side. "These two are not First Order. And besides, they're unconscious and cannot defend themselves. What kind of Resistance member are you to kill them in cold blood when all they did was defend their leader?"

Temmin paused and stared at Asarla with wide eyes as if he was trying to comprehend that someone who associated with Kylo Ren could have a sense of morals. Finally, he sighed and nodded. "Fine. Do we take them with us, then?"

Rey chewed on her lower lip as she considered what to do. Taking them to the Resistance would probably cause an uproar with most of the members, not to mention all three Knights would do what they could to free each other and escape. Leaving them, however, would give them free reign to meet with the other Knights of Ren – and Rey did not know how many there were – and plan to free Kylo. An idea popped into her mind after a moment. "Do any of you have a medikit with you?"

Jessika nodded and ran to her X-Wing, returning with a small square kit. "Are you hurt?"

Rey shook her head and lay Kylo gently down on the ground. She needed to work fast before he burned through the sedative like he had the last time. She dug through the kit and pulled out two doses of stimulant. Perfect.

She pulled off the black helmets covering the Knights' faces and injected both of them with the drug. They woke with a start, gasping as they were pulled rudely into consciousness. Before they had time to grasp what was happening, Rey focused on the Force and stared at them with all her concentration. "You will not remember who was here. Kylo Ren is alive and well but does not require your assistance."

She repeated the phrase a few times. Avin's blue eyes and Calfan's dark ones unfocused as the Force took effect on their minds. When she had them thoroughly convinced, she quickly pulled Kylo back onto her shoulders and headed toward the damaged shuttle. They could not have the Knights wondering why Calfan's shuttle was gone and a damaged one was in its place. "Poe, can you attach a line from your X-Wing to the shuttle? I won't be able to navigate back correctly."

The pilot nodded, and he and Temmin ran to retrieve a thick line. They began attaching it to Poe's ship and the shuttle as Rey eased Kylo's unconscious body to the floor of the shuttle. She cringed as she saw the two Resistance members and Major Ematt's bodies under the emergency fire blanket that she and Kylo had lain over them.

Asarla followed Rey onto the ship and froze as she saw the covering. Her expression darkened, and Rey quickly wrapped her arms around the Togruta. "It wasn't your fault. It was Snoke." She felt something wet touch her shoulder, and she pulled away, wiping a tear from Asarla's weary face. "Which is why we can't let Ren go back to him." Asarla looked over at the unconscious Knight in worry, and Rey smiled softly at her friend, glad she was somewhat back to normal. "Why don't you go grab Ren's helmet? It should be in the room you woke up in."

Asarla nodded and ran into Avin's tree-carved house. Rey watched her for a moment and then finished helping Poe and Temmin attach the line to the shuttle. She returned to the pilot's seat and powered the shuttle up, feeling its engines shutter with power. Asarla returned with Kylo's battle-worn helmet and chose to sit on the floor next to him as Rey pressed the button to raise the ramp.

Rey followed the four X-Wings off the planet and glanced behind her as she heard Asarla choke back a sob. The Togruta held her knees to her chest, and her blue eyes were locked on the three men she had indirectly killed. Tears poured onto her pretty face as she made eye contact with Rey. "I can feel the Dark Side in me, Rey. I'm not a warrior like you and Lord Ren."

Rey made sure the shuttle followed Poe's X-Wing into hyperspace correctly before she stood and moved over to Asarla again. "Hey. Sometimes I want to go back to scavenging on Jakku and forget Finn ever dragged me into all of this." The Togruta let out a short laugh, and Rey smiled at her friend. "Ahsoka Tano wouldn't give up, would she? You can help us stop Snoke from doing that to anyone else. He'll pay for what he did to you and Ren."

**AN: In which Poe and Kylo get a little territorial over Rey, and Kylo probably starts thinking he never should have suggested the sedative to Rey in the last chapter. Thanks for reading!**


	29. Chapter 29

Kylo began to move as Rey and Asarla pulled him down the shuttle ramp. Rey flinched as she heard a soft groan escape his lips, and his arm around her shoulder tensed as he slowly regained consciousness. She had been hoping he would stay out for even ten more minutes so that Luke and General Organa could help decide where to put him on the Resistance cruiser. Rey wondered if he was building up a tolerance to the sedative, considering they had needed to inject him with five doses when they pulled him from the First Order Star Destroyer.

The pilots from the Blue Squadron hustled over to them as they stepped off the ramp. Kylo's dragging boots found purchase on the metal floor as he fully woke, and he stumbled backwards. Rey was impressed that he managed to stay upright considering how groggy his expression looked.

As he registered the Resistance pilots and more members that were soon beginning to gather around, he suddenly looked more alert, and his hand moved to his hip to grab the lightsaber that was not there. His fingers closed around air, and he immediately raised both hands in preparation to use the Force as his dark eyes found Rey. "I _told_ you I didn't want to go back here."

Kylo threw his right hand out as Ello and Temmin got too close to him, and the two pilots flew backwards against three other Resistance members, forming a pile of flailing arms and legs. His other hand moved to do the same to another unlucky pair of Resistance members when his tall body froze. Rey turned to see the small crowd parting for Luke, who strode calmly toward them with his own hand raised. Kylo stared at the Jedi Master with intense concentration, and Rey could sense the Force thick between them as Luke fought to keep the younger man still.

The ship bay, which was usually filled with sounds of engines, shouts, and repairs, was silent, and no one dared to move. Even Rey and Asarla stayed still, neither wanting to interfere with the battle of wills. Luke, ever the patient Jedi, seemed content to hold Kylo all day, but his former student was more desperate to move. Kylo broke free of the Force's hold on him and took a step away, his dark eyes narrowing at Luke.

Leia's voice rose from somewhere behind Luke. "Back to your duties, everyone! This ship isn't going to fly itself!" The crowd seemed to collectively jump out of their stupor and quickly dispersed at the command of the general. Leia stared pointedly at the Blue Squadron until they too left to check their X-Wings.

Rey watched Poe glance back at Kylo with a glare and almost did not notice as the cross-guarded lightsaber jumped out of her hand with the Force. Kylo's fingers closed around the heavy hilt, and she grabbed her own lightsaber from where it hung at her right leg.

The Knight held his lightsaber tightly but did not activate it as his gaze traveled first to Leia and Luke and then to Rey and Asarla. His muscles were tense as he held his lightsaber ready to fight in his right hand while his left was raised slightly to defend himself against an attack. Rey could sense irritation and even a bit of caution coming from him. "I cooperated before because I was injured, but I do not appreciate getting dragged back hereagainst my will." He shot a glare at Rey. "Let me go, or I promise I will alert the First Order to the tracking frequencies of this ship."

Rey could not believe how calm Luke looked at Kylo even after the Knight had successfully broken out of the Jedi's command of the Force. Luke only clasped his hands behind his back, the movement shifting his cloak to reveal the silver lightsaber hilt at his side. "We're quite a way from the command deck. How do you propose to obtain the tracking frequencies?"

Kylo bared his white teeth at Luke. "I'll _take_ it from the mind of an officer."

A sad look passed over Luke's face. "Like you took Han's life?"

The red lightsaber ignited with a loud noise, and Rey watched Kylo's jaw clench in fury. "It was necessary. He was in my way." The twin blue blades on her own weapon hummed to life in her hands, but Luke raised a hand to signal Rey to remain where she stood.

Luke walked swiftly to stand in front Kylo. The Knight glared at the Jedi with such intense anger that his Force powers caused some wiring in the damaged shuttle to burst into flames. Luke's hand rose again to freeze Kylo with the Force, and Rey watched Leia's hand do the same. Even untrained, the general's help kept the Knight frozen long enough for Rey to dart forward and take his lightsaber. It deactivated as she took it, and she looked up into Kylo's dark eyes as she, too, joined the Skywalker twins to keep him frozen.

When Asarla added her own Force powers, Luke relinquished his hold and pressed a hand to Kylo's forehead. The Knight's eyes closed for the second time that day as the Force pulled him unconscious.

()()()()

Rey took a deep breath before the heavy door slid open, and she stepped inside the small room. The walls were a uniform gray, like much of the rest of the Resistance cruiser, and a fluorescent light on the ceiling cast a harsh glare across the square space. A small bed sat in the left corner of the room, and Kylo sat cross-legged on it, his eyes closed and his back straight. A dented metal tray with broken pieces of a cup lay strewn around the room, evidence of the Knight's fury at being held hostage. At least he had been smart enough to eat the food provided for him, for Rey was fairly certain he had not eaten a full meal since at she had taken him off the Star Destroyer.

Rey's gaze turned to Kylo's wrists, which were cuffed together in front of him with heavy glowing metal. If she had not developed compassion for him, she would have laughed at the irony that he was in the same situation that she once had been.

The dark eyes opened at met her gaze, and Rey instantly could tell by the way it took Kylo a moment to focus on her that the Resistance was drugging him. She would be furious if the same happened to her, but without it, Kylo would probably rip through the door with the Force and try to take as much of the ship apart as he staged an escape. The dents in the walls that he had caused by throwing the food tray with his diminished Force powers were enough evidence of that.

Rey stopped by the end of the bed, wishing that her lightsaber hung at the empty leather strap around her leg, but she had left it with Luke in case Kylo tried to get a hold of it. She cleared her throat as she spoke, watching Kylo carefully. "General Organa said that you would only speak with me."

Kylo's dark head dipped in a nod, and he spoke slowly to articulate his drugged words. " _Luke_ ," he almost spat the name out, "seems to think it's a good idea to go through my head to gain information about Snoke."

Luke had always seemed to be respectful of entering other's minds, so he likely had been unable to convince Kylo to speak freely, which was understandable considering he had insisted on locking the Knight up for the good of the rest of the Resistance. Rey and Leia had wanted to treat the Knight as they had before so that he would be more willing to cooperate. Still, she was not sure if digging through his mind was the best course of action considering how fragile his mental state already was.

Kylo leaned forward slightly, his bound hands clasping almost normally. "In exchange for being treated as a guest and not a rabid animal, I will allow only you look through my memories."

Rey frowned and watched Kylo cautiously, trying to sense his emotions through the Force. He must have been using what little concentration he had under the drug to block her from sensing him. She wondered if said drug was making him behave much more calmly than he had earlier, or perhaps he had had time to think through his situation and compose himself. "Can I go through them now, then?"

Kylo's scowl contorted the scar on his face. "No. They won't make much sense to you with this lovely little concoction running through me."

Rey could believe that, but she still shook her head. "So what's to say you won't just knock me out and run when it wears off?"

"I do hope I've earned a little of your trust. I did, after all, help start your Force training without demanding you learn the Dark Side."

"Then allow me to sense you." She hesitated for a moment before taking a step closer to Kylo as his emotions suddenly burst forth. His usual anger hit her in waves of the Dark Side, but she could sense his sincerity. He seemed to genuinely want to allow Rey access to his memories in return for better treatment.

His dark eyes studied her closely, and his wrists pulled at the cuffs in annoyance. "I will promise not to run if you allow me to have my lightsaber."

Rey chewed her lower lip again as she watched Kylo. She wanted to trust him, for she truly believed there was good in him, especially after he had helped dispel Snoke from Asarla's mind. "Why not allow Luke? He's more skilled than I am at using the Force to get into minds."

Kylo sucked in a sharp breath through his nose, and his gaze moved to focus on a dent in the metal wall. "You've experienced some of the… ah, _discomfort_ I've been through recently. I trust you will tread more carefully than Luke would."

The mental fire she had felt in his mind when she had helped him overcome Snoke's torture made her flinch all over again. She hoped he was starting to realize that cooperating with the Resistance was better for his overall health than going back to the First Order. "All right. You have a deal."

()()()()

Rey wandered into a small recreation room and took a seat on the comfiest couch that she could see. She had the room to herself, and she practiced moving a small table with the Force out of boredom. Leia had enthusiastically agreed to give her son a better room, and Rey had left him there to sleep off the rest of the drug the Resistance had given him, which could take the better part of a day considering how much one of the infirmary staff had told her they had given him to subdue his Force powers enough to keep him contained.

A familiar hover chair floated into the room as she sat, and Rey stood as Finn stopped by the doorway. "Hey, Rey."

The former Stormtrooper's voice was tired as he stared at her, and she frowned, moving toward him. "What's wrong?"

Finn did not answer immediately, instead moving his chair over to a game table. He ran his dark hand over it, refusing to look at her. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course." Rey moved over to the game table and took the chair next to it, forcing Finn to meet her gaze.

"Poe told me what he's seen between you and Ren." Rey got the impression that the pilot and trooper were becoming close friends. "Do you have feelings for him?"

Rey's hesitation was all the answer Finn needed. He grabbed her hand almost desperately, shaking his head with wide eyes. "Rey, no. I've known him longer than you have. He's manipulating you!"

She wrenched her hand from Finn's grasp and stood, feeling her anger start to boil up in her chest again. "Unlike what you and Poe seem to think, I can actually decide for myself what I feel. You say you've known him longer, but you were just a Stormtrooper! I lived in his _house_ , Finn. He treated me like I can think for myself, and he taught me some of the Force without shoving the Dark Side down my throat. You've barely spoken three sentences to him!"

Finn looked stunned at her outburst and then slammed his fist down on the arm rest of his chair. "Look what he did to me, Rey! I've been trying every day, but I _can't fucking walk._ " A look of pure fury crossed his usually kind face. "Hell, I can't even feel my feet! Luke tried to help, but my back has healed too badly for him to want to try too much. And why would he want to waste the energy? I'm no one important; just a drag on the Resistance's resources. Kylo fucking Ren took my independence, and my option to fight for what I believe in!"

Rey could not help the look of pity that came to her face. She could not imagine not being able to run and fight for herself. Guilt chased out her anger. He had been injured defending her when Kylo had pushed her into a tree. She should have been able to get up and fight. But now she had developed a complicated attachment to the Knight. She did not know who to side with. Finn, her friend who, yes, had dragged her away from her simple life on Jakku had also been the first person to come back for her when she had been taken to the Starkiller base. Kylo, on the other hand, had begun their relationship by digging through her head, but he had gone on to show her he was human and vulnerable: a man who she had more in common with because of their unique abilities. He seemed to need her help to climb out of the darkness that consumed him.

Tears welled up in her eyes against her will. She hated crying, but she could not seem to stop herself. "I'm so sorry, Finn… I wish I could change everything… I wish we had been able to get off the Starkiller with Han. I wish I could have had time to train with Luke without the constant interruptions." She swallowed against the lump growing in her throat and took a shaky breath. "You're right; I do have feelings for Kylo that I can't fully explain."

Finn looked away, and Rey saw him blink back tears that had appeared in his deep brown eyes. "So you'll stay with him? Regardless of what he has done? He ordered the massacre of an entire innocent Jakku village. He tortured you, and he tortured Poe! I know you probably think you can bring him back to the Light, but he's too far gone, Rey."

"I… I'm not sure what I will do, but I know there's good in him… Snoke's been torturing him, too. If we can get him to side with us, we could stand a chance of toppling the First Order for good." Rey wiped the tears she had not noticed fall down her face.

Finn finally made full eye contact with her. "I'll only believe that when I see him atone for the deaths and injuries he's responsible for."


	30. Chapter 30

Rey's body trembled with a mix of emotions she could not quite decipher as Finn's hover chair practically raced out of the recreation room. Why should she have to defend her feelings to him? It was her life, after all. Finn had rather rudely grabbed her hand and forced her to leave Jakku with BB-8. Rey found herself wondering how different her life would be if she had just given the droid to Unkar Plutt for the sixty portions – more food than she had ever seen at one time in her entire life.

And it was not like she and Finn had any sort of romantic relationship before she had begun caring for Kylo Ren. They had been friends, of course, but she doubted Finn would ever understand what she had gone through after leaving her home – leaving her hope for her family's return – on Jakku. Rey kicked a nearby couch in frustration and then held onto her toes as they screamed in protest at her abuse.

She did feel sorry for Finn's injury, but if Luke could not heal it, she did not know what else to do for him. Without the New Republic's support, the Resistance had little access to advanced medicinal technology. Rey wondered how much experience Luke actually did have on Force healing. Kylo had seemed fairly adept at it, if the little scars on her knee and calf said anything about his power. Perhaps the Knight had found himself in more situations that required it than the Jedi, who had spent at least the last decade in seclusion. She resolved to see if Kylo would be willing to try, although she did not know how he would react to being asked to heal the traitor he had injured himself. It was worth a shot, however, if it would get Finn to at least let go of his anger toward the former Jedi.

Her emotions were still running rampant in her, and Rey felt like lightsaber dueling to work off her pent-up aggression. She doubted Luke would approve of her fighting due to emotions. If their week together training had taught her anything, his usual response to dealing with emotions was to mediate. She knew she would not be able to stay still, and Kylo, who would probably be more than willing to duel, was still sleeping. Perhaps snagging some cookies from the ship's kitchen would make her feel a little better.

The mess hall was empty except for Luke and Asarla. The small Togruta sat sideways on the bench of the metal table, her knees pulled up to her chest as she listened to something the Jedi said to her. Rey hesitated before joining them, knowing Luke would likely be able to sense the chaos of emotions rumbling inside her.

Luke broke off as Rey sat next to Asarla's feet. The Togruta's orange-red hands picked at the material of the dark cloth covering her legs. She could still sense the Dark Side in her friend, and she was about to ask her how she was faring when the Jedi Master spoke. "Rey. Leia told me that Be – Kylo has agreed to let you access his memories of Snoke. I do think I should be there in case he tries to trick you."

Rey frowned and shook her head, studying the Jedi carefully. While Luke was an extraordinary Jedi with a powerful connection to the Light Side – for Rey could sense it radiating off him just as Kylo emanated the Dark – he was mistrustful when it came to Kylo. Rey had a feeling he did not quite believe that the Knight had nothing to do with tainting Asarla with the Dark Side and throwing their shuttle off course. "I know you don't trust him. I've had a hard time trusting him as well, but he mistrusts you, too. If he's willing to cooperate with me, I think we should thank our lucky stars that he is not trying to bring down this cruiser."

Luke pressed his lips together for a moment, sighing softly. "I will be waiting just outside, then." He paused, his blue eyes studying her for a moment. "I think you should mediate before you start and clear your mind. The Dark Side feeds on emotions, and going into Kylo Ren's mind will be a true test of keeping the dark at bay."

()()()()

Rey glanced at the Resistance guards who stood outside the door and entered the room as the door slid to the side. The space Leia had given Kylo was almost twice the size of the holding room he had been in the previous day, which was saying a lot since the room fairly small. The lighting was soft, and a long bed lay against the right wall with the covers pulled up to the pillow. The dark helmet rested on single chair placed at the end of the bed.

Kylo was just stepping out of a tiny refresher to her left, running a white towel over his wet hair. His black pants covered his waist and legs, but his feet and chest were bare. Steam trailed from the room, and he had to duck to avoid smashing his head against the low door frame. His arms lowered, and Rey could see the scar marring his pale chest where she had healed him only a few short days before. He caught her staring and sighed softly. "My apologies. I spent more time in the shower than I thought."

Rey noticed Kylo's fair skin had a slight pink tinge from standing under hot water. He moved across the small space to pick up a black shirt that lay across the bed. Rey could see a long scar that wrapped around his left side and pointed down toward his lower back: a remnant from his encounter with Chewie's bowcaster and the pirates' attack on him. Even though that injury had been just as bad as his chest wound, the scar looked remarkably smaller than the one she had left on his chest. Rey suddenly felt irrationally guilty for leaving such a prominent marking on his skin, even if it had saved his life.

The black shirt fell across Kylo's back as he pulled it on, obscuring the scar from view and snapping Rey out of her thoughts. He looked back at her, a piece of his damp hair falling over his face. "I asked if you were ready?"

Heat reached Rey's cheeks, and she nodded quickly, closing the door behind her before she moved to stand by him. "Oh, er, as ready as I can be."

Kylo sat on the edge of the bed and looked up at her. His dark eyes looked considerably more focused than they had the previous day, telling Rey that the drug was mostly out of his system. He tugged at the sleeves of his shirt, which were a few inches too short for his long arms. "Take a seat. It's easier to focus when you're closer the person whose mind you're entering."

Rey tentatively sat next to him, sensing Kylo's nervous energy that mirrored her own. "Will this hurt?"

A small smile tugged at the corners of Kylo's mouth. "Not if I don't resist."

She nodded and leaned forward, reaching out with the Force to enter into Kylo's mind. His dark eyebrows pulled together, and she watched his torso tense. She barely glimpsed one of his memories – one of his eyes on her as she pressed the sedative into his neck on Felucia – before she was shoved out of his mind.

Kylo's hand clenched and grasped the blanket covering the bed. He looked down at it, taking a deep breath through his nose. "Sorry. I'm not accustomed to allowing anyone in…"

Rey remembered his invasion of her mind on the Starkiller Base and understood the fear she could sense from him. She hesitated for a moment before reaching out and pressing the palm of her hand gently on the unscarred side of his face. "I'm not Snoke. I won't intentionally hurt you."

She took it as a good sign that he did not pull away, so she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his gently. Relief flooded her as he kissed back, and his dark eyes fluttered closed. His muscles slowly uncoiled as he moved a hand to her side. She took the opportunity to press forward the Force again and reach into his mind.

Luke and Leia wanted information on Snoke, but Rey was not sure how to navigate to specific parts of Kylo's mind as she began seeing a flood of the Knight's memories.

_Kylo – Ben Solo – held the motionless body of the female Padawan, tears obscuring his vision as he looked up to see the men Kristofer had led to the Jedi training facility. He somehow knew they would be back to finish the job. His finger found the cracked kyber crystal in his pocket, and he picked up the lightsaber hilt of the dead Padawan in front of him._

_His gaze turned to C-3PO, who was still making a slow way to the ship holding the younglings. The small female youngling cried in his metal arms. Master Luke had always held a sweet spot for the girl, so he stood and ran to the droid, taking the little girl into his own arms. The youngling curled into his warm, human arms, and her cries quieted as her small head rested against his shoulder. "C-3PO, please move Evana to a safe spot."_

_Ben rested a hand on the youngling's back as fresh tears ran down his face. The girl seemed to sense his pain, his anger at the traitorous Padawan and began crying again. He pressed his forehead to her small one, feeling his hands tremble as he held her. "I know, little one…" His voice was raw emotion, the exact opposite of what Master Luke had always taught him._

_A voice in the back of his head whispered for him to leave the girl and kill Kristofer's men. He recognized it as the Dark Side, but he did not care to focus on the Light. He no longer had the energy to fight the murmurs of darkness that he had felt all his life. All he could feel was an awful ache in his chest as he watched C-3PO move Evana's body inside the stone fortress._

_The broken form of Kristofer lay a few feet from him, and he found himself staring at it with a morbid fascination. He'd been Luke's first Padawan, and Ben had been the second. They had been friends, once, before Ben had begun to notice the jealousy. As the grandson of Darth Vader – Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One – he had inherited a deep and powerful connection to the Force that Kristofer had been unable to match. Even dead, Kristofer exuded the power of the Dark Side. It whispered to the side of him that he had always buried under Luke's tutelage,_ "You're stronger than the traitor. You could be more than a Jedi with that kind of power."

_The anguish at loosing Evana, the frightened Padawan he had sworn to protect, welled up inside him, feeding the darkness in him. And yet, the Light held on, strengthened by his selfless need to protect the small youngling in his arms. The opposing sides ripped at his very core as he lost belief in Luke's mission. They had been blind-sided by Kristofer's betrayal. If the Jedi Master had not insisted on renewing the Jedi Order, none of the bloodshed would have happened. Kristofer would not have turned to the Dark Side, Evana would still be alive, and the Force-sensitives in the galaxy would have been able to live out normal lives._

_Drops of rain began splattering across his face and soon soaked through the dark clothes of the traitor before him. The internal struggle between Light and Dark in him made him realize that this was more than him. He could feel – he had been feeling for some time even before the attack – that something dark was gaining power in the far reaches of the galaxy. But the Force needed balance, not the dominance of Light or Dark._

_The girl's tiny hand moved to his collarbone, snapping him out of his trance-like stare at Kristofer. He looked down at her tear-streaked face as he started walking to the lone Starfighter that had survived the brutal attack upon the Jedi Academy._

"Not that one…" Kylo's low voice interrupted the memory. Her forehead leaned against his, and she met his dark eyes as the rest of the memory faded from her mind before she could see it. An expression of grief filled his face, and Rey felt her heart ache in empathy. The emotions attached to the memory resonated within her, unlike the vision the Force had given her. "Let me show you."

_He was several years older, about twenty-four, and Ben Solo was no more. He had given that name up in an attempt to distance himself from his heritage, from Han Solo, the father who had always seemed afraid of his powers. That side of his family was weak anyway with no trace of the Force in the bloodline until the Skywalker midichlorians had manifested in him. Even so, he had not wanted to be trained as Jedi, a sentiment he and Han had both shared._

_Kylo Ren strode from a black Starfighter, his dark hood pulled over his helmet. His eyes scanned the landscape through the silt in his helmet. No sun or moon shone in the sky, and snow collected at his feet as he moved toward a sleek black base with no obvious entry points or markings. He reached the wall and pressed a gloved hand to the smooth surface, pushing forward with the Force. A small hiss reached his ear as a doorway formed and slid open to allow him access._

_Kylo entered a long hallway, and the door slid shut behind him, cutting off the distant light from his Starfighter to cast the hall in pitch blackness. He continued forward without breaking his stride. The power of the Force was thick in the air, but he could sense the presence of hundreds of people without a connection to the Force. Clones._

_He had spent over two years on the base as he had gone through extensive training to learn the Dark Side, but he had never learned the name of the planet. Kylo still did not know, and any attempts to find out had resulted in less than optimal consequences. He had deduced that the power of the Force on the planet had been initially just the Force, existing in harmony with the rest of the galaxy. Now, however, it had been tainted and warped to serve the purpose of the Dark Side, and the base he walked in served as the main focal point of the darkness that fed on the raw Force power of the planet._

_Here, Kylo Ren could feel the call to the Light Side mute in his soul. He felt whole as he walked the empty corridor, his heavy boots echoing off the sleek walls. This was the only place in the galaxy that he did not feel the tearing of the two sides of the Force within him._

_The hallway opened into a large chamber, and Kylo's eyes fell upon the true physical form of Supreme Leader Snoke._

Overwhelming agony shoved Rey out of Kylo's mind. She let out an involuntary scream that mingled with his yell. She gulped for air as his hands on her arms tightened painfully. "I thought we agreed you would show me your memories of Snoke! Why did you push me out?"

The Knight looked up at her with pain in his eyes as he barked a bitter laugh. "I've been to the Supreme Leader's base a number of times, but he burns the location and his appearance out of my memory before I leave." He grimaced and looked away, letting go of Rey's arms. "I apologize. I tend not to think about that much. I didn't realize it would hurt you, too."

Rey looked away from Kylo, her hands trembling slightly as she took several steadying breaths, willing herself to stay focused on the Light as the memory of the dark place washed over her. Her heart pounded in her chest as she realized the implications of the memory. Kylo might be Snoke's student, but even he did not know much about him. It harmed him to even try thinking about where the Supreme Leader was located. "Then how do you know how to get there?"

He ran a hand through his damp hair, which was starting to develop soft curls toward the ends as it dried. He seemed to hesitate before deciding that he could tell her, "He sends an unpiloted Starfighter to my home on Kiros. It never shows coordinates or flight history, and I am only ever able to take over manual controls if I am attacked, which has never happened in that ship."

Rey searched Kylo's face, feeling his pain and… fear. Yes, it was definitely fear he was projecting. "Why are you letting me look into your mind? I thought your loyalties lie with the First Order and Snoke."

Kylo met her gaze evenly. "If you haven't noticed, I don't know much about Snoke other than his control over the Force is stronger than anyone in history. He has been careful to conceal or remove anything about him from my mind that does not exclusively involve my training." His lips twitched slightly. "I assume that was so that if I was ever captured, I could not reveal anything detrimental."

Rey stood and moved away from him, pacing as her mind raced. "So you don't have any more information on Snoke? What about the First Order?"

Kylo snorted softly and shook his head. "If the Resistance has managed survived this long, they likely have more than enough information on the First Order. I will not supplement their knowledge. Besides, I am not officially in the First Order's ranks. You would not be able to find much in me anyway." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Do you see? My value to Snoke lies with my power, not with my knowledge of the First Order."

Rey turned to the door, shaking her head slowly as the memories she had taken ran through her mind in fragments. "I need to tell Luke." The metal door slid open, and one of the Resistance guards took a step inside, holding up a small hand blaster. He shot it at Kylo, and instead of a blast, a small metal object flew out. The Knight raised a hand, and it stopped in mid-air. A second metal object embedded itself into his palm. He hissed and ducked as the one he had frozen shot toward him and bounced off the wall behind him.

Rey watched with wide eyes as he stared at his hand before looking up at the Resistance member with a harsh glare. Shock froze her to the spot near the doorway. He stood, and she felt his anger rapidly building. "I thought I wasn't going to be drugged!"

Already he was starting to stagger, and Rey had to concentrate harder to sense the Force from him as she took a step toward him. The Resistance member lowered the small blaster. "Change of plans. General Leia Organa has been relieved of her duties regarding prisoners of war. The Resistance formally charges you with the murder of Han Solo, Lor San Tekka, and Major Caluan Ematt. You will stand trial."


	31. Chapter 31

Rey stood at the end of a long table, glaring down at the Resistance members who sat around it. Luke and Leia both stood to her left. She could sense fear from the general while the Jedi Master was careful to keep his emotions down. The members at the table were comprised of all the high ranking officers of the Resistance, including the commanders of each X-Wing squadron. Rey guessed about twenty or so men and women comprised the meeting.

"We already know he killed Lor San Tekka from Commander Dameron's report of the events on Jakku," an older man insisted. Rey did not know the man's name, but she was fairly certain he had replaced Ematt as a major. "And Chewbacca has confirmed the Stormtrooper's words that Han Solo was killed by his lightsaber. We don't need to hold a trial when his guilt is already confirmed."

A Tarsunt male with long white fur nodded in agreement, and Rey watched others do the same. The Tarsunt's nostrils flared as he spoke in a gravelly voice, "Many of us saw what happened in the ship bay. It took four Force users to stop Kylo Ren, and that was without his lightsaber. He cannot be allowed to live."

"No," Leia's sharp tone cut through the murmurs of agreement running through the room. "We are not the First Order. We do not kill those in our custody, especially without a fair trial."

"General Organa, we have stripped your duties regarding prisoners of war due to your personal attachment to Kylo Ren." The older man spoke gently to Leia. "We certainly understand the reasons, but we cannot let a mother's love get in the way of properly dealing with a practitioner of the Dark Side. Because of your misguided trust, we allowed him to have access to our base under the supervision of Jedi Master Luke and Padawan Rey, but he killed Major Ematt and nearly got away with kidnapping a valuable Force user, not to mention that another Force-sensitive who could have been of use to us has been brought back here with the taint of the Dark Side."

Fear, suspicion, and panic emanated from the Resistance members around the table, and Rey shook her head desperately. "No! I've told you Kylo Ren did not kill Major Ematt! Snoke was controlling Asarla. He helped get rid of his control."

"I do agree that Kylo Ren must be punished for his actions," Luke spoke softly against Rey's outburst. "However, I do not think that killing him is the best course of action."

The Tarsunt's wide-set eyes narrowed at the Jedi. "So what? The lives of those he's killed mean less than his?"

"Of course not, Dand, but the very fact that he did not try to destroy the base on D'Qar says that he is willing to cooperate." Luke clasped his hands behind his back. "Snoke has tortured him extensively. I think that we can convince him to partner with us. Helping to bring down the First Order – which is what everyone he killed was trying to do – will surely absolve him of his crimes."

The room was silent for a moment, and Rey tentatively probed forward with the Force into the unknown major's mind. She knew it was an invasion of privacy, but the man could not sense her without the Force, and she needed more information.

Fear consumed the major's mind. The man could not shake the memory of Kylo Ren defeating Luke's hold on him. The Knight was too unpredictable, too powerful for even a Jedi Master to contain for long. And now, Luke and Rey were fighting to show Ren mercy. The Force-sensitives were in the way; they were ruining the mission of the Resistance. Without them – any of them, including Leia – the fight against the First Order would be fair. Neither side would have those who could magically manipulate matter and mind, and the Resistance would be able to perform a strategic series of guerrilla attacks on the First Order to bring them down.

Rey pulled out of the man's mind, her eyes wide as she stared at him. The major met her gaze, and his eyes searched her face and body language. _He knows._ The man's fear was echoed across the room in a majority of the officers. Some of them began muttering to each other, and Rey glanced at Luke, whose bearded face was pulled into a frown as he sensed the unease in the room.

Before Rey could speak up in defense of herself and Luke, the door to the conference room opened, and a Resistance guard pulled Asarla into the room. Glowing cuffs wrapped around her small wrists in front of her, and her blue eyes, which were wide in terror, had a certain cloudiness to them. The Resistance had given her the same drug they were using on Kylo. "Finally caught the other Dark Jedi, Major."

Rey made a loud noise of protest, and Luke took a step toward Asarla. "Asarla Tano is the descendent of Ahsoka Tano, a great ally of the Rebel cause. She has been touched by the Dark Side, but she is willing to train on the Light."

Asarla stumbled forward as the Resistance guard pushed her. Several of the officers were watching the four Force users in fear. The Togruta's musical voice was slurred from the drug as she whimpered, "I'm sorry! I di'n know what I was doing with Major Ematt…"

Luke moved toward her, shaking his head at the assembled officers. Rey could sense that he was starting to care for Asarla. "Fear is exactly what the Dark Side feeds on. We must not become like the First Order."

Poe Dameron slipped into the room quietly and took an empty seat toward the end. Only a few of the officers noticed him enter as most kept their eyes intently on Luke. Distrust of the Jedi rippled through the room again.

"Hold on," Rey interrupted the growing sounds of the officers speaking. "Can't you see what's happening? If you try to get rid of us," her eyes met the major's for a moment, "then Snoke, who is more powerful than even Ren, will just waltz in and destroy everything you've worked for! Ren said Snoke's the most powerful Force user in history; he's probably amplifying your fear so that you get rid of us for him! He's so dark that I wouldn't be surprised that he would let his apprentice die if it meant taking the Resistance down with one fell swoop."

Her words did not go over with the officers as well as she had thought they would. Most looked offended at the thought that Snoke could possibly be manipulating them without their knowledge. "She's been in Ren's mind! She's probably been tainted, too!"

" _What?"_ Rey stared at the officer who'd spoken, the commander of the new Green Squadron. "How could you even – _What?_ "

The major stared at Rey, rage on his face as her words confirmed that she had invaded his mind. "Arrest her. We'll sort her out after we've dealt with Ren's punishment. She'll only try to interfere anyway."

"I'll do it," Poe stood as he spoke. Rey glared at him and backed away, unwilling to use the Force to push the pilot away with the current mood in the room. Poe gave her a strange look and took her upper arm, pulling Rey from the room. The noises of the conversation muffled as the door shut behind them.

Rey tried wrenching her arm out of Poe's hand, but his grip turned painful as he hauled around a corner. He finally let go and spoke in a low voice, "Luke did some weird mind trick to speak in my mind. He doesn't think he can dispel the fear or convince them to give Ren an easier punishment. He's going to meet us at the cloaking shuttle; we just need to get Ren out."

She stared for a long moment at Poe, unsure if she had heard him correctly. "And why do you care about helping Ren? You've called him a manipulative monster."

A dark expression crossed the pilot's face. "You'll see. Come on."

Poe led her down several corridors, holding her arm again to give the appearance that he was arresting her. He stopped after several minutes and pressed against the wall. "I'm going to bring you down the hall like I'm going to put you in a holding room. Can you use the Force to knock out the two guards?"

Rey focused on the Force and sensed two young men standing guard by a door that presumably held Kylo. "Yes. I should be able to."

Poe nodded once and took her arm again, pulling her down the hall. Rey narrowed her eyes as she saw they were _playing_ with Kylo's black and silver helmet. One put it on and spoke through the voice distorter, "I'm Kylo Ren, and I can be stopped with a little chemical." His tenor voice did not sound nearly as menacing as Kylo's deep bass. His partner laughed and held out his hand to try on the mask. The young man put his hands up to take it off and struggled for almost a full minute before he figured out to unlatch the mouthpiece.

The two guards straightened as they caught sight of Poe leading Rey. Before they could say anything, Rey entered their minds and forced them to sleep, her worry for Kylo and her annoyance at their amusement with his helmet helping to focus her Force powers. She snatched the helmet from the first guard's hands as Poe pressed a button on the side of the door. The metal slid to the side, revealing the Knight's tall frame lying still on the floor.

Rey rushed into the room and knelt beside him, her eyes widening as she saw what had happened to him in such a short time. His lower lip was split open, and a bruise had blossomed from his cheek to the corner of his mouth. The scar on his left side had been cut crudely and was staining his dark shirt with blood. She pressed a hand to his shoulder, and he stirred. As his head shifted to the side, she winced as she saw his dark hair matted to his face where his scar had also been reopened.

"I don't particularly like the guy, but I can't stand seeing someone being tortured like that," Poe's voice came from behind her. "Even if he did play inside my head. I can get back at him later."

Rey shook her head and concentrated on the Force as outrage built up inside of her, willing the bleeding wound on Kylo's side to mend. The skin slid together to stop the bleeding, and she let go of her focus. They did not have time to fully heal the wound. Kylo's eyes flickered open to look up at her, his voice soft as he whispered, "Rey."

She gave him a soft smile and helped him to his feet. He let out a gasp of pain and swayed, and Poe moved to support him as they left the room. "You've got the glowing weapon of destiny. I'll help him, you defend."

Rey nodded and grabbed the lightsaber from her leg, holding it tightly in her hand as Poe directed her to the ship bay. Kylo was injured enough that he did not fight the pilot's help as they walked quickly down the hall. Poe whispered for her to stop, and they paused by a small door leading to the ship bay. Rey cracked it open and peered through. The cloaked shuttle that they had taken onto the First Order Star Destroyer rested with its ramp open a short running's distance away. However, Kylo was in no condition to run, and Rey was not even sure if he quite knew what was going on.

She glanced back at Poe, who moved quickly through the door. "I'll prep the shuttle for you, and when I leave it, I'll cause a distraction so you get him on board." He walked calmly across the bay and waved nonchalantly to a mechanic nearby before he disappeared inside the shuttle.

Kylo leaned against the wall and pressed his left hand over his side. His face was extraordinarily pale, and blood dripped from the open cut on his face. His dark eyes closed for several moments; he was not handling the pain as well as he normally did. Rey realized he must rely heavily on the Force to help him physically, especially when he had been hit by Chewie's bowcaster. She could sense a little of the Force coming from him, but she assumed he was conserving his energy rather than use it to block out the pain.

She glanced back through the door and watched as Luke entered the ship bay, followed by Asarla who had been freed of the cuffs. The Jedi's faded brown cloak billowed around his ankles as he walked, and Rey noticed he carried Kylo's lightsaber along with his own at his side. Luke walked purposefully past several ships, and everyone in the vicinity seemed to look in the opposite direction as he walked with the Togruta.

Asarla followed Luke onto the shuttle, and Rey was just beginning to wonder if she could harness the Force to use the Master's trick when she heard a shout behind her. Five Resistance members hurried down the hall toward her and Kylo. Three held traditional blasters while the other two had small hand-blasters that were undoubtedly loaded with the drug they had shot Kylo with.

 _Shit._ Rey unsheathed her lightsaber and cut through the first few shots of both blasts and metal objects that flew toward her. Kylo slipped through the door, clutching his side as Rey backed into the door and shut it with the Force to block the attacks for just a few moments.

Rey let Kylo lean on her shoulder as they hurried toward the shuttle. Pilots and mechanics in the area yelled as they saw the Knight, and the door they had shut burst open. A metal dart containing the drug sank into Rey's upper arm before she could block it, and she froze. Panic appeared on Kylo's face as she looked up at him. Her limbs were already getting heavy, and her lightsaber dropped to the metal floor as she swayed. Another dart hit her leg, and she sank to her knees, her vision spinning as she thought she saw Kylo pick up the long hilt and activate the twin blades.

She sensed a brief surge of the Dark Side radiate from him as he wrapped a hand around her upper arm and began pulling her uncooperative body toward the shuttle, the lightsaber spinning in his other hand to cut through more drugged darts that they shot at them both.

More Resistance members began swarming the ship bay as Rey felt the textured metal of the shuttle ramp under her hand. Her vision lurched as the ramp began moving upward with them still on it. The ramp clicked closed underneath them, and both she and Kylo fell to the floor as the shuttle shot forward.

"I didn't mean to go with you, but I suppose I have no choice now," Poe grumbled from the pilot's seat. Luke sat next to him in the co-pilot's chair, his long fingers moving nimbly over the switches and buttons as they flew at full speed out of the ship bay. Through the haze of the drug, Rey had a feeling of deja'vu from when they had managed to escape the Star Destroyer with Kylo and Asarla.

Kylo leaned against the wall, taking shallow breaths through his nose. Asarla moved toward him and pressed the end of her shirt to his cut face. Clearly, she did was not affected as much by the drug as Rey felt.

Rey pressed her forehead to the cool metal floor and breathed heavily through her mouth. She could not focus on any one spot of the floor, and her arms and legs felt like someone had tied heavy weights onto each of her fingers and toes. She had been hit with two dose of the drug, and as she looked at Kylo's trembling form, she vaguely realized that the Knight was quite a bit bigger than her slender body, and he had already proven he could burn through the Resistance's standard sedative dose quickly. The drug that had been shot at her was likely loaded with enough of the drug to bring Kylo into submission. Really, it was a miracle that she had not dropped unconscious the moment she had been shot the second time.

The shuttle jumped into hyperspace, and Rey finally let go of what little focus she had as she passed out on the floor.

**AN: The Resistance gets just a tad jumpy at all the Force-sensitives on board. Thanks for reading!**


	32. Chapter 32

Asarla's face swam in her vision as she woke, and Rey pressed a hand to her forehead as a soft groan escaped her. The throbbing in her head hurt like hell, but at least she had decent control of her arms. "Rey? Can you stand?"

Rey hauled herself to her feet by using the wall for support. The floor seemed to lurch underneath her, and she stumbled forward, her vision spinning. Asarla caught her easily and let Rey lean on her slim shoulder. The Togruta seemed to anticipate her coming question. "We drifted while we decided what to do. You've been out for maybe seven hours or so."

Her vision steadied as she leaned against Asarla, and she looked up to see Kylo standing against the wall across from her, holding a piece of what looked like torn cloth to the side of his face. Standing still, Rey's vision was steady enough to make out that the Knight was exhausted, but he looked to be thinking clearly without the influence of the blasted drug.

Poe and Luke sat at the pilot controls, and the shuttle gave a soft shudder as it entered an atmosphere. Rey swung her head to look around Asarla so that she could see out the window, but her vision blurred in protest at the sudden movement. She stumbled forward, and the Togruta grabbed her shoulders to keep her from falling.

"Water will help." Kylo's low voice was gravelly with dehydration as he watched her.

Considering her head throbbed as if she had drunk nearly two-fold of the wine she had shared with him the night of their dinner, Rey did not doubt his words. She started to nod and then thought better of it as she slowly lowered herself into one of the few seats in the shuttle. "Where are we going?"

" _Someone_ insisted that he wouldn't cooperate if we didn't go to Kiros first," Poe grumbled from the pilot's seat as he flicked a switch. Rey moved her head more slowly than she had before to look over Luke's shoulder. The familiar beautiful green of the planet greeted her as the shuttle flew closer to the surface.

Kylo moved to stand behind Poe, and Rey noticed he was walking stiffly. "Land just north of the city Suni."

Poe jumped as the Knight's voice came so close behind him, but he nodded and glanced at Luke. "You sure you trust him?"

Rey could not see Luke's face, but she imagined had a small smile from his tone as he spoke. "Ren has allowed me limited access to his mind. His intentions as to why we are coming here are clear and without malice."

Kylo stared at the Jedi with an unreadable expression, his hand moving to his side almost unconsciously. Rey got the feeling he had consented reluctantly. "We won't stay long, and we do need supplies."

Poe gave a soft sigh as he flew the shuttle over an outdoor marketplace. "I'm only going along with this because my mother trusted you, Master Luke."

"I know."

Poe eased the shuttle down in front of a familiar circular house and landed smoothly. Kylo moved to the ramp and pressed his palm down on a button located on the wall. The ramp lowered slowly, and he began descending down it. Luke stood quickly and trailed after the Knight. Rey heard the Jedi speak quietly to Kylo, but she could not make out his words as the two entered the house.

Asarla let Rey lean against her as they descended, and she focused on the ground as they walked to keep her head from spinning more than it already had. Poe followed them and whistled as he saw the house. " _This_ is where you were kept hostage? Talk about preferential treatment."

Rey resisted the urge to roll her eyes as they entered the main hall. Luke and Kylo spoke quietly to each other as they walked slowly down the hall Rey knew led to the Knight's bedroom, and she wondered what had transpired between them when she passed out. Until now, Kylo had refused to say much to Luke, but his dark head leaned down to speak softly to the Jedi as they talked. At least the Knight had not yet gone into another of his temper tantrums. Rey watched the two stop about halfway down the hall, and Kylo's hand shifted to open the door with the Force. He disappeared inside, and Luke stood at the doorway, his faded cloak the only thing visible from where Rey stood.

Asarla pulled Rey to the nearby dinner table and forced her to sit down before she quickly opened a nearby doorway. She left it open, and Rey glimpsed the kitchen through it as the Togruta bustled about the room. She had not seen many kitchens in her life, but it was fairly large with counters covering most of the walls and a stove sitting on the right. A island of sorts sat in the middle with two stools pushed against it.

Asarla pulled out five glasses from a cupboard and filled them with water before she brought them out to the table. The glasses, slick with condensation, slipped out of her hands as she walked. The Togruta threw out her hands in a futile attempt to catch them and watched with wide eyes as all five glasses came to a smooth stop just inches from the floor. Her small hands lifted, and the water glasses lifted with her, floating smoothly onto the table.

Rey stared at Asarla as she reached slowly for one of the glasses. It had taken her hours with Kylo to learn how to properly move small objects, and several irritatingly slow lessons with Luke to concentrate enough to move multiple objects at once. "I thought you weren't trained?"

Asarla sank down into a chair, clutching one of the glasses in her hands. "I've… well, I was practicing a little ever since that day in the market, but I wasn't very good until Snoke..." She paused and closed her eyes for a moment, taking a drink of the water desperately. "I think he amplified or accelerated the maturation of my abilities. I'm not really sure what I'm capable of considering I only remember a day or two of being on the Star Destroyer."

Poe plopped into a chair next to Rey, having been gawking at the architecture of the hall as well as the table displaying a hologram of various planets. "I can't say I'm much of a fan of the Force." He grabbed one of the glasses and took several gulps. The pilot's tone turned bitter as he continued, "Although I probably shouldn't say that since I just helped four Force users run away from the Resistance. Speaking of which, we're all probably considered traitors for helping Kylo Ren escape execution."

Rey took a sip of her own water and nearly groaned as the cool water hit her lips. She drained the glass without a second thought, feeling the liquid soothe her dry throat. She was used to dry conditions on Jakku, but the drug had left her more dehydrated than she had originally thought. The pounding in her head relieved slightly as the water entered her empty stomach.

Kylo and Luke reappeared around the corner and approached the table. The Knight's head was still lowered to catch the shorter man's words. Rey noticed with a slight feeling of satisfaction that they spoke to each other and walked together as equals, not as adversaries or as student and teacher. Kylo moved stiffly as he had on the shuttle, and Rey suddenly realized that the Resistance members who had enacted their revenge on him had likely done more than cut open his prominent scars. He was probably bruised in several places other than the visible dark spot on his left cheek.

Kylo reached the table and set two identical objects in front of Asarla. They were thin, slightly curved, and light gray in color, and Rey estimated they were each about two-thirds of the length of her lightsaber hilt. The white pigments that swirled around the Togruta's eyes lifted with surprise as she picked one of the objects up. Her expression immediately changed into one of reverence as she met Kylo's dark eyes. "Where did you find these?"

"I spent some time travelling the galaxy several years ago. Those were among the many items I collected." Kylo's voice still cracked with dehydration, and he sat down, holding out a hand. One of the two remaining water glasses slid across the table and fit easily into his palm. Luke took a seat across from the Knight and next to Asarla but did not make a move toward the last glass of water. Seeing that he was not going to drink it, Rey grabbed the glass and began downing the water.

Asarla held the object tightly in both hands, and a white lightsaber blade slid out from it. Rey vaguely recalled the Togruta mentioning that Ahsoka Tano had the green and yellow lightsabers as a Padawan but had built two white ones when she had left the Jedi Order. Kylo had somehow managed to find the white blades and had kept them without telling his assistant.

Poe stared at the white lightsaber as it hummed in Asarla's hands before she deactivated it. "That's what we needed to get here? Two more lightsabers? I thought the First Order rounded up all the known ones and destroyed them years ago."

Kylo's deep voice became stronger after he took several sips of water. "At my suggestion. They didn't really think to check my own house or my assistant's, now did they?"

Poe raised an eyebrow at Kylo, looking skeptical of the Knight. "I didn't really peg you for someone who would deceive the First Order."

Kylo's dark eyes flicked to Luke's for a moment before he shrugged. "I did tell Rey that I'm not technically part of the Order's ranks. I answer directly to the Supreme Leader, not any of the generals. I was granted permission to operate within the organization to assist with certain matters, such locating the last Jedi Master."

Poe grumbled something about frolicking in his mind, but both Kylo and Luke's heads turned away from him and toward the door as a black shuttle landed next to their stolen one. The Knight stood immediately and crossed the hall as four black-clothed figures disembarked from the shuttle, their faces all hidden behind helmets. The remaining Knights of Ren.

They filed into the house, and Rey recognized the helmet of Calfan half-hidden underneath her cowl. She realized she had dropped Kylo's mask on the Resistance's ship bay and wondered if it had made it onto the shuttle with them. She made a mental note to check the shuttle later.

"Ren!" Avin Ragnos' voice was distorted through his helmet, but Rey remembered his stride as he practically ran over to the head Knight. "You look awful."

Kylo's back was to her, but Rey could practically hear the scowl in his voice. "Good to see you, too, Ragnos."

The other three Knights warily watched the table where Rey sat with the other Force users and Poe. She frowned as Calfan's hand moved to the staff slung across her back, and she stood, fingering the lightsaber that had been returned to her leg. "I thought I made it clear that Ren did not need your help."

Kylo turned his head to look at Rey, the cut on face seeming to open further as the right side of his mouth twitched into a smirk. "You didn't honestly think that I wouldn't train my Knights to recognize when they've been influenced by the Force?"

Rey suddenly felt quite foolish, and heat reached her cheeks in embarrassment. Of course Kylo had thought to train his Knights, especially if he worked for someone as powerful as Snoke. Avin and Calfan had probably realized what she had done and alerted the other Knights of Ren.

"Hold up," Poe interrupted behind Rey. "Who are these guys, and why haven't we run away? I thought we had an unspoken agreement to run away from creepy people dressed in all black. Not," he added as Kylo shot him a dark look, "that _you,_ of course, are necessarily creepy."

Rey grabbed Poe's arm and pulled him closer, muttering quietly to him as she sensed all five Knight's eyes on them. "I'll explain later, but they are the Knights of Ren."

"Ren," Calfan's low alto was monotone through her helmet. "We know you're loyal to the First Order, but they killed two of our own. Our reputation is marred each moment we allow them to go unpunished. Especially Hux."

"We want revenge for my brother," one of the Knights unknown to Rey growled. His voice was almost as deep as Kylo's. "We will continue without you, but your talents would be useful."

Kylo's dark head tilted to the side for the moment before he turned back to face the other Force users behind him. Rey noticed he made eye contact with Luke for several seconds longer than anyone else before he looked back to the four Knights. "Mind if I bring some help?"

()()()()

It was late in the evening when they all finished a very awkward dinner prepared by Kylo's two protocol droids. The silence had only been broken by small requests to pass some plate or to thank one of the droids for refilling a glass with either water or wine. Rey was careful not to touch the wine as her head still faintly throbbed with the last effects of the drug. Even Poe and Avin, the two most likely culprits for speaking out of turn or breaking the ice, were quiet. The pilot in particular looked uncomfortable being around so many Force users and Knights, but he concealed his feelings fairly well by stuffing his mouth full of food and keep his brown eyes on his plate.

Asarla left to show the four Knights to some guest rooms, and Kylo tried slipping away to his own room. Rey followed him down the hall, and he turned to her after a moment, sighing softly. "Yes, Rey?"

She crossed her arms over her chest, noticing that Luke had not yet given him his lightsaber back. "Why? You were so eager to get back to the First Order, but now you're willing to betray them? Won't Snoke punish you or even kill you?"

Kylo frowned as he watched her carefully. Although she still was not at full strength, she could tell he was purposely shielding his emotions from her. "Weren't you the one who didn't want me to go back to him?"

Rey closed the small distance between them, keeping her eyes locked on his dark irises. "Yes, but you haven't been so keen on doing what I've asked of you."

"I took my mask off for you."

His immediate response took her off guard. Kylo had taken his mask off when she had first been a captive. She had not questioned his actions then, but now? "And why did you – "

Kylo grabbed her wrists, pulling her closer than she already was. "Can't you see that we're bonded by the Force? It strengthened when we touched minds on the Starkiller Base, but it began," his frantic words slowly dropped into a whisper that only she could hear, "the moment I held you in my arms."

Rey did not try to pull out of his grip on her wrists as she stared at him, trying to recall when Kylo had held her. Was it when he had rendered her unconscious near Maz Kanata's castle? She had always assumed he had ordered some Stormtroopers to carry her onto his ship. "The moment...?"

She could feel the heat radiating from his body as his eyes grazed over her face. "When you searched my memories for Snoke, I, ah, slipped into yours to confirm my suspicions. I wasn't sure until then."

Rey tried to calm her rising irritation at his vague answer and his avoidance of her original reason for confronting him. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Kylo let go of her right wrist and interlaced his long fingers in hers. "The attack on the Jedi Academy. You were the youngling I took from C-3PO's arms."


	33. Chapter 33

Rey could not form a coherent sentence as she gaped at Kylo. Her mind reeled with the implications of his words. She had been at the Jedi Academy before she had been left on Jakku. Kylo knew who she was, had even held her as a child, and he had never mentioned he knew something of her past.

Their fingers were still interlaced, and Rey looked down at their hands before meeting Kylo's face again. He seemed almost unsure of what to do next now that he had told her the identity of the youngling. Rey's mind finally forced her tongue to cooperate, and she whispered softly, "Did you leave me on Jakku?"

Kylo's eyes closed for a moment, and his hand seemed to tighten around hers before he breathed, "Yes."

Rey wrenched herself away from the Knight. He let her go easily, and she shook her head, her eyes wide as a jumble of emotions filled her head and chest. "You… I thought my family… I was told they'd come back… No! You left me to fend for myself for fifteen years! And you only just now think to mention that you happened to leave a Force-sensitive girl on Jakku?"

Kylo stood rooted to the spot, his shoulders slumped forward as he watched her pace in front of him. "Let me explain."

Rey suddenly felt rage win the war of her emotions, and she stalked toward him, grabbing her lightsaber from her leg. It would be so easy. Kylo was unarmed and still wounded. The Resistance wanted him dead after all. She unsheathed her twin blades, and Kylo's hand shot out, grabbing her wrist and forcing the lightsaber up into the air with her arm. He leaned forward and kissed her for a moment, his lips clashing desperately against hers.

Rey stopped, her eyes wide as she pulled away from him. "That's my move, Ren."

A grin cracked through his solemn expression, but he did not let go of her hand. The lightsaber hummed above them, and one of its blades hovered close to Kylo's hair, casting blue light on both of their faces. "The Dark Side does not suit you, Rey."

Rey shut her eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to force down her emotions so that she could think rationally and push back the Dark Side. Kylo pulled the lightsaber from her hand and let the blades sheathe before he let go of her wrist. He took several steps away from her, holding the hilt out defensively as he watched her warily. "I'll give this back if you allow me to explain without killing me first."

Her anger still boiled in her chest, but she nodded. "Fine." Kylo led her inside his bedroom and out of the hall where snooping ears could hear them. He took a seat on the edge of the black covers and motioned for her to join him.

He stared down at her lightsaber, examining its design with a practiced eye before he spoke slowly. "I knew they – those men – would be back eventually. They feared the rising power of the Jedi, and they quite easily destroyed the Padawans with the inside knowledge gleaned from _him_. I decided to hide you on Jakku."

"You had no right to put me on a planet with the false hope that my family would soon be back for me!" Rey stood from the bed, glaring down at the Knight in fury.

Kylo looked up at her, his own dark eyes narrowing. His white teeth bared in a snarl back at her accusation. "I was protecting you! If I hadn't left you under the watch of Plutt, you would have died with the other younglings! How dare you attack me for saving your life?"

Rey made a reach for her lightsaber, but he moved it quickly behind his back. "You said the Knights of Ren destroyed the clan! Why didn't you get me off that planet after that? I waited! For years, I was sure someone – my family – would be back to take me home!"

Kylo paused and closed his eyes for a moment. His jaw clenched briefly, and his voice still had the undertone of a growl. "I had every intention of returning you to Luke. But he disappeared, and Snoke…" His dark eyes met her narrowed ones. "It was better to keep you hidden."

"Why did you hide _me_? Why not the others?" Rey challenged, her arms crossed over her chest.

Kylo stood swiftly and towered over her as he stared down at her. She scowled at his superior height and deliberately poked his injured side to spite him. He let out a hiss of pain and took a step back, turning to protect his left side. "I didn't realize it until much later, but we formed some sort of Force bond. I don't completely understand it; I haven't been able to find much about it in texts." Kylo's voice softened to a tone she had never heard from him before. "It compelled me to protect you. I also caught you when the Starkiller Base began cracking. I've never tried to kill you, Rey."

_Ben rested a hand on the youngling's back –Rey's back – as fresh tears ran down his face. She seemed to sense his pain, his anger at the traitorous Padawan, and began crying again. He pressed his forehead to Rey's small one, feeling his hands tremble as he held her. "I know, little one…"_

It had been when they had touched, when she had somehow been able to sense at such a young age the turmoil in Ben Solo's heart. Rey was sure that that moment had formed the bond.

She ran her eyes over his tense body, slowly accepting that he was right. Their attraction for each other, no matter how hard they had both tried to deny it initially, had been driven by the Force. As she grew more confident in her abilities, the more the Force had, well, _forced_ them together. Rey somehow knew he cared for her just as she did for him.

She turned her back to him, studying the dark curtains over the window. "I… I'm not sure I can forgive you for abandoning me on Jakku."

"I did not abandon you. I made sure that someone was looking out for you." Kylo's voice roughened as he continued, "You would have remained safe if that _Stormtrooper_ had not blundered along with the droid."

Rey remained frozen to the spot as she stared unseeing at the walls of Kylo Ren's bedroom. She could sense his sincerity though the Force. His explanation was the most honest he had ever been with her, not that he had ever taken great pains to lie. Perhaps it was the bond between them that she was starting to feel was true, but something about their exchange had changed their relationship in a few short minutes.

She was not exactly sure of what a Force bond was – she would have to ask Luke – but she was sure theirs was particularly unusual. Kylo commanded the Dark Side while she struggled to remain on the Light. Maybe it was his inadvertent influence that was causing the Dark Side to occasionally well up in her. Asarla had once mentioned that he fought to stave off the Light, so it was likely that she impacted him as well.

Rey turned back to look at Kylo's tall form and let out a long sigh. Life had been so much simpler when all she had to worry about was cleaning off her recent scavenging haul and bartering with the disgusting Unkar Plutt. Her simple Jakku life was because of him. But even so, Kylo was probably right. She would have died with the other Jedi younglings had he not done what he did. He had left her on that godforsaken piece of floating sand, but he had saved her life. Kylo had unwittingly shaped her life more than either of them realized. Rey had developed survival skills and learned to fend for herself. His decision to hide her had allowed her to live.

Kylo seemed to sense her acceptance of his explanation. He moved back to stand in front of her, exposing his injured side as he raised his left hand to the side of her face and kissed her gently. The remnants of Rey's anger expelled from her chest as she kissed him slowly in return.

Kylo's remorse and apology flooded her senses as their lips moved together. He carefully moved to sit back on the bed, and Rey stepped forward to keep contact with him. The Knight's hands moved to her sides, and she straddled his lap, feeling the incompletely healed cut on his lower lip with her tongue. Her hands moved to his chest and slid slowly down the dark cloth before she moved her fingers underneath his shirt. Rey ran her hands over his lean stomach, and Kylo pulled away from their kiss to brush his lips to the pulse at her neck. She shivered at the attention and quickly grabbed the hem of his black shirt, tugging the clothing off of him. He moved easily to allow the removal of his shirt, revealing his pale, muscular chest.

Rey immediately regretted poking his side as she saw the deep purple bruise marring his side where she had only partially healed him on the Resistance cruiser. Various cuts and bruises each about the size of a fist dotted his exposed skin. "Oh my stars…"

Kylo followed her gaze to the bruises and shook his head. Rey felt his hands at her sides tighten slightly, although he was careful not to harm her. "It's nothing I can't handle."

Her finger grazed over a lighter bruise on his shoulder, and he frowned, gently pulling her hand away by her wrist. Rey leaned back against his knees, forcing down pity. "Who did it?"

"I've ordered the deaths of many Resistance members. I suppose they were friends and family of a few of them." Kylo looked away for a moment, and Rey sensed his hate at having been weak under the drug. "And FN-2187."

It took Rey a moment to realize who he meant. " _Finn?_ He was one of the men who attacked you?"

Kylo's lips cracked into a bitter sneer and pulled at the cut on his face. "He's not very pleased with what I last gave him." He pressed a hand to the cut before he sighed and moved Rey gently off of him. "I should use my energy to heal instead of… this."

Rey frowned and crossed her arms over her chest, feeling irritation rising inside her. "So first you tell me you left me on a desert planet, and now you're denying… _this_ again? You ass."

Kylo folded his long legs in front of him on the bed and handed Rey the lightsaber, letting out a soft laugh. She studied the rare smile on his face as she vaguely noticed his stiff movement. "'Ass?' That's the most derogatory name you can call me?"

Rey rolled her eyes and took the hilt. "Well, there are more words, but you wouldn't understand them considering I really only know them in Jakku's language." Her irritation subsided as her gaze found the purple bruise again. "Can I help?"

Kylo regarded her for a moment and nodded. "I don't suppose Luke taught you anything about Force healing?"

Rey sat to his left, letting her right leg hang over the edge of the bed. "He touched on it, but not much. But I did heal you on D'Qar, remember?"

He gave a very faint hum in recollection, and Rey smiled at the low noise. "You were fueled by panic and adrenaline. It is more difficult to master the technique outside of battle, especially when the pain is not your own."

Rey chewed her bottom lip for a moment and raised her hand over the huge bruise. She pushed down her emotions as Luke had told her and focused on selflessly helping Kylo as she concentrated on the Force to completely mend the wound. Slowly, the deep color faded into a light purple and then an ugly green before it vanished from the Knight's side. A scar from the cut was the only evidence of the injury.

She lowered her hand, and a wave of exhaustion washed over her mind. She blinked up at Kylo, her eyelids heavy. He steadied her with a hand on her shoulder. "I honestly didn't expect that to work the first time you tried. You're getting stronger."

Rey grinned tiredly at him and then suddenly leaned forward, passing out from expending the energy and focus to heal Kylo.

()()()()

Rey woke to the sounds of Kylo rummaging through the black dresser near the bed. She groaned and rolled onto her back, watching him through half-open eyes. He glanced back at her, pulling on a black shirt with sleeves that ran down to his wrists. The cut on his face had closed into a scar that was slightly more faded than the one that the cut had opened. He tugged the high collar up his throat and to the base of his jaw. "I forgot to mention that Force healing is exhausting."

"Yeah, that must've slipped your mind," Rey grumbled as she sat up. Kylo had pulled the covers over her, and she pushed them off as she moved.

He shrugged on a long black tunic that fell down to his ankles and wrapped a thick belt around his middle. Even without his hood and helmet, the attire made him look as intimidating as when she had first encountered him in the forest near Maz Kanata's castle. "Your old clothes as well as the ones I provided for you should still be in the room you occupied."

Rey nodded but remained where she was. "You never answered my question last night."

Kylo's dark eyebrow rose as he pulled black leather gloves onto each hand. "I gave you a lot of answers last night."

Rey set her jaw stubbornly as she met his gaze, wanting him to realize she would not let the subject drop. "Yes, but I think that was to distract me from my original question of why you would go against the First Order."

Kylo paused, his right glove halfway onto his hand. "That's an answer for another time."

Rey stood and stalked toward him. "I helped heal you!"

Kylo's dark eyes flashed as he hissed, "It was nothing I couldn't do myself! I did you a favor by allow you to practice using the Force!"

She raised a hand to the scarred side of his face, but he backed away warily. "You yourself said we're bonded. I deserve answers since you left me on Jakku."

His gloved hand ran through his dark hair, and he shook his head. "I do owe you answers, I grant you that, but this particular one will have to wait." His hand lowered and gestured to the door, which slid open at his command. His tone was harsh as he scowled at her. "Now, go clean up or eat. You have overstayed your welcome here."

Rey knew threatening him with her lightsaber was most certainly not the way of the Light Side, as Kylo had pointed how the night before. She stormed out of his room, intending to find if Luke had any more answers to coax out. She stalked down the corridor and muttered a few choice curse words in the language of Jakku as she entered the main hall.

Poe and Avin sat at the dinner table, both taking very large bites of their breakfast. The pilot's cheeks swelled with food as he looked up at her, and Rey was suddenly glad that he did not know enough of the house's layout to realize whose room she had just left. She waved as nonchalantly as she could and took a seat next to Poe as she greeted both men. "Morning."

A sneaky grin covered Avin's face as he swallowed. "Have a good night?" Unfortunately, it seemed Kylo's friend did not share the same ignorance that Poe had.

Rey plucked a grape from Poe's plate. "A… disturbing night."

"Really?" Avin's mouth twitched into a smirk. "Ren not good in bed?"

Poe choked on his food and began coughing. Rey covered her face with both hands as she felt heat undoubtedly changing her complexion beat red. "Nothing like that has ever happened between us."

Poe took a long drink of his water and blinked back tears as he stared at her. "I hope that's true, Rey. Finn told me what you said to him."

Rey squeezed the grape she had stolen from the pilot until it broke open. Its juices ran down her fingers, and she stared down at it to avoid both men's gazes. "I was only helping Ren heal, nothing else."

Avin snorted and took another bite of whatever breakfast he was eating. His words were muffled as he spoke through the food. "Typ'cal Ren. He 'ever lets w'men get close." He swallowed, and Rey wondered if he had even bothered to chew. "I don't think I've ever seen him as close as you two were back on Felucia."

"Don't you ever keep your mouth shut, Ragnos?" Kylo's deep voice sounded from behind the other Knight.

It was Avin's turn to become red. "Er – sorry, Ren."

Kylo scowled down at his fellow knight and took a piece of cut up fruit from Avin's plate as he leaned against the table. The room fell into an awkward silence that was broken by Poe's occasional cough to finish clearing his throat. Rey had finally caught Kylo's gaze when the faint noise of a ship landing reached her ears. They all turned to see a sleek black Starfighter landing smoothly next to the two shuttles parked outside.

Rey recognized the fighter instantly. Snoke was summoning Kylo Ren.

**AN: Please continue leaving your lovely notes. You all are amazing. Thanks for reading!**


	34. Chapter 34

The tails of Kylo's black tunic rippled around his legs as Rey followed him down the hall. The Knight's longer legs made it so she had to take two steps to his every one, and she almost had to jog to keep up with his brisk pace. "Ren. You know what will happen if you go."

"I have an hour to get into that fighter." Kylo's eyes flicked toward Rey. "Did my helmet make it with us?"

Rey frowned and watched his expression from the side. "It might be on the shuttle, but you won't need it if you don't go." Her eyes were glued to his face, and she nearly ran into a column as Kylo turned a corner. She skirted around it and trailed the Knight to the indoor courtyard.

Luke and Asarla stood with their backs to the entryway. The Jedi Master held his green lightsaber out and moved it deftly in his hands. The small Togruta had the two white lightsabers weapons in both of her hands, mirroring the Master's movements. The three blades hummed in the air, and Luke turned to strike at Asarla. The Togruta stepped back and blocked the Master, fighting in the same style that Rey had seen Ahsoka Tano use in the image chip she had watched with Asarla. She moved well, but it was clear the Togruta had more natural talent in the mental aspect of the Force than the physical elements of lightsaber combat.

Kylo cleared his throat, and Luke stopped, lowering his lightsaber to the side. The Jedi's brown cloak lay discarded next to the entryway, and Rey caught a glimpse of the cross-guarded hilt at Luke's side. "My lightsaber, Luke."

The green saber sheathed with a soft noise, and Luke let out a long sigh. "I thought we agreed you wouldn't carry it so that Commander Dameron and young Asarla would feel more comfortable around you."

Kylo's gloved hand raised, and his lightsaber jumped off of Luke's side and into his palm. He tested its weight in his hand as he dark eyes grazed over Asarla and Luke.

The Force flowed heavily in the room with the four. Rey could sense the Light in Luke contrast thickly with Kylo's Dark, and she felt the darkness coming from Asarla as well, although it was much less stifling than the waves that came off of the Knight.

Kylo gave Luke a pointed look and let his lightsaber hang at his hip. "The Supreme Leader is expecting me. It is not wise for you to remain here in my absence."

The Jedi paused for a moment, and the two stared at each other silently. Rey could not tell if they were purposely using the Force, but it seemed to condense around them. Luke nodded slowly after a moment, but the pressure of the Force did not lessen. "Of course. We will leave soon, then."

Rey's eyebrows pulled together as she looked between Luke and Kylo. She had assumed that the Jedi would do everything in his power to stop the Knight from going to Snoke, but Kylo began walking away from the courtyard without an objection from the Jedi Master. She glanced at Luke, who had turned back to Asarla, and then jogged after Kylo.

"I will not push my luck by ignoring The Supreme Leader's summons, so don't even try to talk me out of this, Rey." Kylo did not look in her direction, and Rey could sense that he was trying to shield his emotions from her. He stormed into the main hall and headed toward the front doors without a word to the four Knights who had gathered around the dinner table.

Kylo took five steps outside before Rey held out her hand and took his lightsaber with the Force. He turned back to her, a snarl forming on his lips as his gloved fingers closed around Rey's right wrist. She snatched her own lightsaber from her leg and activated it, holding one of the blue blades next to his jaw where his scar began.

They stood at a stalemate for several long minutes, for Kylo was unwilling to back down and Rey was loath to harm him or let him leave. He finally ripped his heavy hilt from her with his free hand and backed away, his jaw clenching as she sensed his fury rising. "I told you not to stop me."

Kylo held out his left hand toward the cloaking shuttle they had stolen from the Resistance, and his black helmet flew from the open ramp and into his grip. While he focused on summoning the mask, Rey marched forward and grabbed his upper right arm before she pressed a harsh kiss to his lips. He returned the kiss for only a moment and pulled away from her, his dark eyes half-closed. Rey tangled her fingers in his dark hair at the base of his neck. "You won't follow his order to kill me. He'll torture you again for that."

He took a step back, and his mask hissed as it locked onto his face. Kylo pulled his hood over the helmet, and Rey felt as if he had grown several inches as the intimidating mask distorted his low voice. "I can handle it. Go with Luke."

Kylo turned away and strode toward the Starfighter. Rey watched him climb quickly into the open cockpit and jumped as Poe whistled softly next to her. "That's a Z-95t Headhunter." He glanced down at Rey with an expression like a child with sweets. "It's a _nice_ ship."

Rey turned on Poe, poking his chest hard as the Starfighter's engines roared to life. "That _nice ship_ is taking Ren to Snoke!"

"Hey!" Poe poked her back and looked up as the black ship left the ground. Once it was well into the atmosphere of Kiros, the pilot waved a small round device in her face. "I figured that's what it was there for. Which is why I took off its sensor and put a homing beacon in its place."

A grin spread across Rey's face, and she threw her arms around Poe's shoulders. The pilot laughed and hugged her back. "I'll forgive that little moment you had with him since you're so obviously pleased with me." He swaggered back a few steps and chuckled, a cocky smirk on his face. "Plus it helped distract him so that I could finish my handiwork. C'mon, let's go tell Luke."

()()()()

Luke and Asarla sat across from Poe and Rey at the long table. The homing beacon receiver sat in front of the pilot, and he kept running a finger over it nervously. The Jedi clasped his gloved cybernetic hand in his real one and sighed. "We should not activate it immediately. I would guess that Snoke would prevent that Starfighter from landing at his base if he senses a beacon sending a signal."

Poe nodded and kept fiddling with the receiver absently. Rey watched him anxiously and looked up at Luke's calm gaze as the Jedi continued, "I believe this is the one chance at finding where Snoke is truly located. However, I do not feel comfortable bringing you and Asarla with me. You have not spent enough time training."

Rey made a loud noise of protest along with Poe. "Ren said Snoke's the most powerful Force user in history. We can at least be your backup!"

Luke shook his head firmly. "I will go alone and scout the planet, but I will not engage Snoke. This way, we will know which planet it is for a future attack."

Rey slammed her fist onto the table, startling both Poe and Asarla. "Snoke will torture Kylo! He thinks I am his weakness, and he'll try to eradicate that from him!"

Luke's bearded face betrayed none of his emotions, but Asarla's expression looked pained. The Togruta knew what it was like to be at Snoke's mercy. "Ren knew full well what he would be getting into when he willingly climbed into that Starfighter."

" _Ren_ is a reckless man who sometimes does not know when to stop or allow others to help him." Rey turned her head sharply to see the four Knights of Ren standing in a line near the table. Calfan, who had spoken, stood a step forward from the others, indicating that she was in charge of the group in Kylo's absence. "We have a pact to defend each other. If you will not face Snoke for Ren, we will."

The receiver in Poe's hand jumped into Luke's with the Force. "You cannot if you don't know what planet he's on."

The four Knights moved forward as one, and Rey jumped to her feet, her lightsaber blades activating. She held it in front of her, creating a barrier between the Jedi and the Knights. "Stop! Every moment we waste fighting with each other will cause more harm to Ren." She looked between the four black-clad warriors and the two Forces users with Poe. Rey addressed Calfan, trying to keep her voice firm. "I don't know how the Knights of Ren formed, but I think you've got the right idea to work together. I've seen three of you fight together as a team in battle. As individuals you are all incredibly skilled, but together you're almost unstoppable. If we all ally together, we could get Ren away from Snoke for good."

The room fell into silence as Rey finished her short speech. Calfan glanced at the masked Knights standing with her, and Rey hoped they were seriously considering her proposal.

Luke held up his gloved hand, shaking his head. " _No,_ Rey. I told you. This is only a scouting mission. Nothing more."

Frustration built up in Rey, but before she could argue, Asarla's musical voice echoed her thoughts aloud. "You're more stubborn than Lord Ren, Master Luke! You've said that this is the one chance we have at finding Snoke's base. I can sense the Light in you from a good distance. Do you honestly think that you can get close enough to whatever planet Snoke's on without him detecting you? Even if you do get away without being captured or killed, he will move immediately and take Ren with him if he doesn't outright kill him for leading you there! _We have to strike now._ "

Rey stared at Asarla, having never heard the timid Togruta speak so passionately – or loudly – before. She did not know everything about Ahsoka Tano's story, but Asarla was coming into her grandmother's legacy.

Luke eyed the young woman next to him. "We don't know what defenses Snoke might have set up."

"We'll take the cloaked shuttle. It's supposed to be able to get past sensors undetected." Poe's usually grinning face was serious as he spoke. "We can sneak in as close as we can get."

Luke remained silent for a long moment as his blue eyes cast over everyone in the room. His shoulders sagged as he seemed to realize he could not convince Rey and Asarla to remain behind. "You all realize that if we do not plan and execute this well, this could be a suicide mission?"

"Just the kind of mission Ren would enjoy," Calfan laughed. She gripped her short staff in front of her, and Avin hoisted his blaster. Rey could not see the other two Knights' weapons as they stood behind their comrades. "We could use a few Force users as allies."

"I'm in. I want to make that _Supreme Leader_ realize he can't mess with us." Asarla's voice had a hint of a threat in it.

Poe nodded in agreement, and his hand moved to the blaster he carried at his belt. "If it minimizes the loss of more Resistance lives, then I'll certainly help."

Rey's heart skipped a beat as everyone turned their attention to Luke. The Jedi Master leaned back in his chair, still holding onto the beacon receiver. He let out a long side and rubbed his neck. "All right. Let's go get Ren."

Luke's thumb pressed down on the receiver, and the device chirped loudly in his hand as it found the location of the Starfighter at Supreme Leader Snoke's base.


	35. Chapter 35

Rey paced the shuttle anxiously and tapped her fingers against her lightsaber. "It's been over two hours. What's taking so long?"

Poe sighed and looked over his shoulder at her. "Ren's Starfighter has a class three hyperdrive. This shuttle has a class four. It'll take us longer to get there than he did." The pilot pulled back a lever in an attempt to make the shuttle move faster. "Shame we don't have the _Falcon_. That ship can move."

Rey groaned and continued pacing the shuttle as her stomach twisted nervously. Desperate for something to do, she pulled out the three ties holding her hair back and ran her hand through the brown locks like Kylo did when he was aggravated.

The Knights of Ren sat in four of the five seats available, forming a solid mass of black clothing. Avin's knee bounced restlessly. Asarla sat cross-legged on the floor, her eyes shut as she practiced employing Luke's methods of meditation. Rey could not help but marvel at how patient the Togruta was since she herself could barely manage to sit still most days. She supposed she had been patient by waiting for years for her family to return to Jakku, but her mind had been occupied by scavenging to scrape up a meal and the occasional wounds she received from entering into less than optimal areas.

Rey deftly wrapped the hair ties back into her usual three knots and resumed her pacing, spinning her lightsaber hilt in her hand. Asarla's right eye opened partway, and she sighed softly. "Rey, don't worry. Lord Ren can handle himself."

Poe snorted at the formal title from the pilot's chair. "'Lord' Ren. He doesn't look very lordly to me." He slowly pushed the lever forward, and Rey stumbled a few steps forward as the shuttle left hyperspace. "Looks like this is our stop."

Through the shuttle windows, Rey could see what looked like a massive blood-red diamond. Luke stiffened in his seat, and he leaned forward, shaking his head slowly. "Mortis… Snoke's on Mortis."

Rey had never heard of such a planet, but the Jedi Master's tone was filled with caution and a slight hint of reverence. The name sounded almost evil as she repeated it softly.

The diamond seemed to grow as the shuttle approached it, and Rey flinched as they neared the edge. The monolith appeared solid, and she was almost convinced they would crash into it. The shuttle was within a moment of hitting the side when the top half of the eerie diamond seemed to twist on itself. A dark light appeared in the center of twisting diamond, and the shuttle flew directly into it. Rey could not see even her hand in front of her face for several long intense minutes before a snowy planet surface suddenly rose up before them.

Poe let out a string of colorful curses and pulled up on the controls harshly before they smashed into the ground. The shuttle rose several feet into the air, and Rey spotted the black base she had seen in Kylo's memory. Poe checked to make sure their cloaking mechanism was still active before he flew the shuttle directly over the base.

Rey was almost too impatient to allow the ramp to fully lower, and she bounded down it as quickly as possible. Asarla trailed after her followed by the four Knights and Luke. They each jumped the short distance to the roof of the base.

Her thin boots hit the metal, and she immediately felt the intense pressure of the Dark Side of the Force almost stifle her. Luke moved beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Mortis is a channel for the Force, and Snoke seems to have twisted it toward the Dark. You'll need to keep a clear mind and remain focused on the Light more than ever."

Rey nodded once and looked up to find the shuttle, only to find she could not determine where it had gone. Hopefully its cloaking would remain intact until they were ready to leave. She cast her gaze over the landscape surrounding the base. It stood only about two stories tall, but its jagged black structure imposed on the snow-covered landscape from her vantage point on top of it. Dead trees littered the ground with withered corpses, and Rey realized the faint light allowing her to see came from a sun that barely managed to get anything past the thick cover of red clouds.

The small group made their way across the roof as they searched for an opening to exploit, and Rey gripped her lightsaber tightly in her hand. Finally, Luke beckoned them to a small square near the edge of the roof. She assumed it was a trap door, but there was no visible way to open it. The Jedi knelt down and held his hand over the door, using to Force to push it open. Nothing happened. Luke tried again and looked up at Rey with a frown.

Asarla slipped between two of the Knights and knelt beside the Jedi Master. The orange-red of her skin contrasted sharply with the black metal as she placed her small hand on the door. Rey sensed the Dark Side from the Togruta as she pushed forward with the Force, and the door sank slowly down before it slid to the side. Asarla met Luke's surprised gaze. "The Light Side does nothing here. I guess it's a good thing Snoke left me with the Dark."

Luke nodded in agreement, his expression slightly bewildered. Calfan stepped around the three Force users and took a look through the open trap door. Rey saw no sign of a ladder, and the Knight shrugged before she jumped in. A moment later, her distorted voice floated up to them. "It's not a long drop!"

Rey took a deep breath and allowed gravity to pull her down through the door. Her stomach flipped before her feet crashed against the floor, and she nearly fell over. Calfan grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the way as Asarla came through the door. The other three Knights followed suit, and Luke brought up the rear.

They found themselves in a long hallway not unlike the one Rey had seen in Kylo's memory that extended in two different directions. Red lights placed every few feet gave the hall a creepy glow. Rey focused on the Force help her find Kylo. The waves of the Dark Side always preceded his presence, but with the almost suffocating power of the darkness surrounding the very air of Mortis, she could not locate or even sense him. She glanced at Asarla for help, and the Togruta's blue eyes shut briefly. Soon, her small hand pointed down the hall to Rey's left.

The group rushed down the hall as silently as they could, and Rey looked to Asarla for an explanation for how she had detected Kylo. The Togruta glanced at her with an unreadable expression. "I can feel a small spark of Light in him."

Rey almost stopped moving, but Luke pushed her forward lightly. She had never sensed the Light in Kylo, especially since he had killed Han. She assumed that he was fully consumed by the Dark Side, which had only enhanced when they had begun the strange relationship between them.

They reached a junction in the hallway, and Asarla pointed down the new corridor. The group walked for several meters, and Rey ran into Calfan's back as she stopped abruptly in front of her. The female Knight was taller than she, so Rey stepped around her to see an open room filled with nearly fifty Stormtroopers. And General Hux.

"I'm afraid the Supreme Leader is quite busy at the moment for you to seek an audience with him." The redhead's lips curled into an arrogant sneer. "You'll have to settle for me."

Rey suddenly felt an agonizing pain in her mind, and she let out an involuntary scream as she fell to her knees.

"Rey!" Asarla ran to her side as the four Knights moved into a formation in front of her. She looked up at the Togruta in confusion, unsure of where the pain had come from.

Hux barked a cold laugh from where he stood. "Ah, yes. The Supreme Leader is well aware of your little bond with Ren. He's been waiting until you got here to start breaking it."

Rey's eyes widened, and she saw each member of their group stiffen. Snoke had known they would come. What better way to get the all known Force users in the galaxy together on his home playing field than mess with the emotions of two that had already formed a Force bond? Rey had to admit it was an ingenious trap, and she cursed herself for not realizing it sooner. She had been too focused on helping Kylo.

The pain in her mind washed over her again, and she inexplicably realized that Kylo was nearby, probably in an adjoining room. Asarla pressed a small hand to her shoulder as Rey croaked out, "Ren's stronger than you know. Let me see him."

Asarla helped her to her feet, and Rey could see Hux's head throw back as he laughed again. "Surrender your lightsabers, and I will allow you to see him."

"Surrender yourself, and we'll allow your troops to live," Calfan growled from behind her mask. Each Knight held their respective weapons in a battle stance, and Hux chuckled, raising a gloved hand in preparation to signal the Stormtroopers behind him.

Asarla tilted her head subtlety to the side, and Rey followed the point of one of her horns to see the outline of a door to their right. The Force seemed to try to pull her toward it, and she knew Kylo was somewhere behind the door.

Hux's hand lowered, and he shouted, "Attack!" The Stormtroopers surged forward, and the Knights of Ren attacked as unit as Rey had seen them in Kylo's home. They made quick work of the first several troopers. The sounds of lightsabers hummed in the air as the green, blue, and white blades each activated to deflect blaster fire and destroy some of the troopers.

Rey and Asarla began edging toward the side door as the shots bounced off of the staff lightsaber in Rey's hand. Luke shoved a group of Stormtroopers backwards into each other, and Rey was relieved to realize that the Light Side could still do some damage, just not on the building itself. She cut through several troopers who tried to get close and stood in front of Asarla to defend her as the Togruta opened the door with the Dark Side. Luke jumped with the aid of the Force to them, and they each slipped inside, letting the Knights of Ren take care of the Stormtroopers as they had planned.

They entered a long, cavernous room that echoed with the remaining sounds of battle behind them as the door slid shut. The room was dark apart from a single red light that shone above a stone throne, which sat against the middle of the back wall. Supreme Leader Snoke rested calmly upon it, the red light casting ominous shadows over his scarred face.

Rey could not distinguish Kylo's black clad form kneeling on the floor from the dark room until the silver on his mask caught the light as he moved to look at them. His sides expanded rapidly, and Rey could sense his pain through their bond. She took a several steps toward him, holding her long hilt in both hands.

Snoke's scarred, bald head turned toward them, and his tattered lips turned into a wicked grin, accenting his gaunt features. "Come to save the traitor?"

Rey paused a few feet from Kylo, tightening her grip on her lightsaber. She could see Asarla and Luke on either side of her out of the corner of her eyes. The Knight had ignored an order to convert her to the Dark Side and then had refused to kill her, and now it seemed that Snoke labeled him a traitor.

The Supreme Leader stood and descended calmly down the few stairs leading from his throne. He was thin, too thin to be healthy let alone still living, and Rey thought he looked like the mummified bodies she had sometimes come across in the wreckages on Jakku. He had thick dark clothing on that covered a curved back, but even with the curve, he was at least a foot taller than Kylo, if not more. His black eyes sent a shiver running down her spine as they met her gaze and seemed to bore into her very core. "The Chosen One."

Rey's eyebrows pulled together in confusion, but she did not have much time to wonder about the strange words as Luke's green lightsaber rose to parallel the floor. "Snoke. You have committed crimes against the galaxy. Surrender now, and you will be put to a fair trial."

Snoke's scarred lips twisted into a sneer as he chuckled. "You'll have to do better than that, _Jedi._ " The tall man lunged at Luke in a blur, a long red lightsaber activating in his hand.

Luke jumped backwards and caught the red blade on his own. "Can't say I didn't try." Red and green smashed into each with a flurry of blows, the blades cracking and hissing every second as the Jedi and Leader danced around the room.

Asarla knelt beside Kylo to make sure he was all right. Knowing the Togruta was not comfortable in lightsaber combat, Rey ran forward to help the Jedi. Snoke twisted masterfully to block her twin blades along with Luke's. She tried attacking in quick succession with both sides of her lightsaber to catch Snoke off-guard, but he thwarted every attempt and even managed to force them both onto the defensive several times.

Desperate to land a blow, she aimed her lightsaber low at his legs, and Snoke kicked out, his heavy boot smashing into her left arm. Rey let out a scream as the bone cracked under the impact, and she let go of her lightsaber, holding it in just her right hand. She could do nothing as she watched the red blade slice through her left wrist.

An inhuman howl escaped her lips as she stared paralyzed in horror at the newly formed stump that ended her arm. Snoke let out a savage laugh. "The Dark Side has a hold on you, _girl._ Use it."

Luke stood frozen in shock just a few feet from her, and Snoke turned to resume their furious duel. Rey stared at them with blurred vision as the Jedi was barely able to keep up with the Supreme Leader. Luke's eyes darted toward her in concern, and Snoke took advantage of his distraction to slice through the Jedi Master's middle. Luke crumpled to the floor, his lightsaber rolling away from him.

"NO!" Rey let out a guttural scream. She tried to haul herself to her feet, but her body seemed unable to respond to her commands.

Snoke stalked back toward her, his twisted lips curling into a laugh. "Well, Chosen One? The Dark Side will give you the strength to avenge him."

Rey managed to grab the lightsaber that she had dropped and reactivated it. "Luke… wouldn't want that."

"Then you will die, as you should have the moment my apprentice knew about you." The red lightsaber began to fall toward her in a deadly arc, and Rey's arm felt heavy as she tried to raise her own lightsaber to defend herself. Her arm moved too slowly, and she was about to accept her death when a crackling red blade caught Snoke's in midair.

The two red lightsabers hissed and snarled as they locked together, and Kylo's dark form stood above her. The anger at Snoke and his worry for Rey radiated off of the Knight and somehow gave her a surge of strength to pull herself to her feet. She faintly heard a hum of another lightsaber activating and saw Asarla holding her white blades where she stood behind the Supreme Leader.

Snoke's mouth contorted into a snarl, and he shoved his lightsaber forward, forcing Kylo to take a few steps back to stand at Rey's injured side. "Traitor!"

Kylo's dark mask moved to glance at Rey for a moment, and she could imagine the smirk on his lips as he turned back to the Supreme Leader, his cross-guarded blade spinning in his hand. "I always have been a traitor."

**AN: Oofta. I apologize for ending it there, but you should know by now that I have an incurable love for cliffhangers. Thanks for reading!**


	36. Chapter 36

Kylo's crackling lightsaber spun and hissed as it met Snoke's time and time again. The Knight was brute power, and Rey could see the Supreme Leader's skinny arms vibrate through the dark clothing every time their blades met. But Snoke's tall, thin frame was faster than Kylo, and he forced his apprentice to continuously turn and back away to avoid and counter the well-aimed attacks.

Asarla soon joined the fight, her white lightsabers smashing against Snoke's as he warded off both the Togruta and the Knight. Kylo began a quick succession of blows that he had once used with Rey in a duel that kept Snoke occupied while Asarla's small frame darted low underneath the crashing red blades. She slashed her right lightsaber forward, managing to cut a deep laceration to the Supreme Leader's lower leg. He howled in pain and shoved his hand forward, throwing Kylo backwards with the Force.

Kylo landed several feet away, and Rey heard the air leave his lungs through his mask. She began to move slowly toward him, her limbs still heavy and uncooperative. Distantly, she realized she was probably going into shock, but her thoughts were only of Kylo and her want to protect him.

She was halfway over to him when she heard the clatter of a lightsaber hitting the ground. Her eyes darted over to see Asarla fighting with only one of her lightsabers. She held the limping Snoke off fairly well, but she was clearly uncomfortable fighting and beginning to panic at having to face the Supreme Leader alone. Red and white blades locked together as they both pointed to the ground, and Snoke hissed something that Rey could not hear. His sickly pale hand lashed out and touched Asarla's forehead. The Togruta's eyes rolled back in her skull, and her small body shuddered before she dropped to her knees.

Rey could not figure out why Snoke did not finish her friend off as he stalked toward Kylo, who had gotten to his feet. His hood had fallen from his helmet, and he held out his right hand for his lightsaber. Rey watched his gloved fingers close around it, and he backed away swiftly as Snoke attacked. He had to dodge several wild sweeps from the red lightsaber before he was able to unsheathe his own. Rey started to move to help him when a white lightsaber obscured her vision.

Its light blinded her for a moment, and she blinked down at Asarla, whose eyes were the eerie gold once again. The Togruta slashed at her neck furiously, and Rey barely ducked underneath its sweeping arc. She held her left arm close to her body as she took several steps back on heavy legs. Her vision blurred at the sudden movements, and she dropped to her knees before she could steady herself. Her lightsaber rolled away as she caught herself with her hand. She looked up to see Asarla standing over her, and her hand shot out to grab her small ankle. She yanked with as much strength as she could muster, and the Togruta fell to the floor with yell. The second white lightsaber dropped from her hands.

Rey pinned Asarla down with her body's weight, placing her right arm over the thin orange-red throat. Asarla kicked at her angrily, but Rey's dense scavenger muscles were too heavy for the petite woman to dislodge. She held down her possessed friend and pressed her weight against the Togruta's throat almost too harshly as she looked up to keep track of Kylo.

The Knight and Snoke were almost evenly matched, and Rey could not distinguish whose blade was which through the red blur between them. Kylo had claimed he was not fully trained, but he was immensely skilled with a lightsaber, and any lack of training he might have had was made up for by the fact that he, unlike Snoke, had something – some _one_ – to fight for.

"Rey…" Asarla's soft voice croaked up from underneath her. She tore her eyes away from the battle and quickly removed her arm from the Togruta's neck as she realized she had been choking her. Asarla gasped for air for only a moment before she shoved Rey off her and picked up the blue lightsaber, her golden eyes narrowed in hatred.

Rey kicked out at Asarla's shins before she had a chance to activate the blades and tried to pin the Togruta again, her basic survival instincts taking over. The two wrestled on the floor for several minutes until Asarla scratched the end of her left arm. Fiery agony burned up from the stump to her neck, and Rey screamed, allowing Asarla to press her to the cold metal floor.

The pain seemed to focus her mind, and she grabbed Asarla's throat, forcing her way into the Togruta's controlled mind with the Force. Snoke's darkness met her instantly, and Rey forced herself to think of saving her friend, of keeping Asarla from the Dark, and of her affection for Kylo. Her pain and anger at Snoke for controlling Asarla and manipulating Kylo crept into her focus. Her mix of emotions and selfness need to help her friends drove her control of Force, and she could not identify if she was commanding the Light or the Dark as she shoved Snoke's influence from Asarla's mind with a loud yell.

The Togruta's hold on Rey weakened, and her now blue eyes fluttered closed. Asarla dropped to the floor, her chest rising and falling gently. Rey pulled herself to her knees and shook the Togruta lightly. When her former assistant did not move, she looked over her shoulder at the ongoing battle.

To her shock, Kylo no longer held his lightsaber. He was ducking and dodging Snoke's attacks, his gloved hands raised to defend himself with the Force. His right glove was ripped open on the side, revealing raw, burnt skin from his small finger to his wrist. Rey's eyes dropped to the floor, and she saw the cross-guarded hilt lying in two pieces. She took a moment to realize that her scream had probably distracted him long enough for Snoke to cut through his lightsaber.

Rey sensed that a mental battle raged between them in addition to the red lightsaber that Kylo continuously evaded, and she could feel the Dark Side thicken further in the air as the two pushed at each other for dominance. The Knight ducked under another swipe toward his mask, and his left hand closed around one of the white lightsabers Asarla had dropped. It activated in his hand, and he twisted it expertly as he fought back against Snoke's furious attacks.

Rey stood frozen in her spot for several long moments as time seemed to slow. Kylo spun on his feet to gain momentum for a blow that she could predict would inevitably land on exposed Snoke's side when he let out a cry that distorted through his mask. He brought his left hand to the silver on his mask, and Rey sensed the mental anguish through their bond as he inadvertently left his back entirely exposed to the Supreme Leader. He took several steps forward, which was the only thing that saved his life as Snoke's lightsaber grazed through his lower back.

Both Kylo and Rey roared in pain and fury as the Knight dropped first to his knees and then forward onto his stomach, his mask clanging against the floor. Rey ran toward him, her injuries forgotten as her vision was only focused on Kylo and the angry red, smoking incision that marred the Knight's back.

She dropped to his side, not caring that she did not have a lightsaber to defend herself. His sides expanded quickly, and she could hear his swallow breaths through his mask. She pressed her thumb and middle finger to either side of the helmet, and it hissed as it released. She pulled off the mask to reveal Kylo's pale face, his black hair matted to the sweaty skin. His eyelids flickered open as he tried to focus on her.

Snoke strode toward them leisurely, and his tone told Rey he believed he was the clear winner of the battle. "I spent years molding Kylo Ren into the perfect weapon, only to have all my work undone by _love._ " His snide words cut through Rey as she brushed Kylo's hair from his face. Luke was dead. Asarla unconscious. Kylo dramatically injured. She was one-handed and unarmed. They had wasted all of their lives to save one man from the darkness. "It is a shame to have to start over again, but I am nothing if not patient. The last Jedi is gone, and I do have the lovely little granddaughter of the great Ahsoka Tano to take his place. She's not as powerful as descendent of Lord Vader, but she'll do for now."

Rey's ire blossomed in her chest as he spoke so causally about disposing Kylo and using Asarla for his own purposes. She looked up at Snoke's tall form, her eyes narrowed as she realized how close he was. There was not time for her get one of the discarded lightsabers with the Force, but she would not go without a fight. She prepared to lunge at him, but Kylo's gloved hand closed around hers. He shook his head minutely. She stared at him in confusion and then looked back up at Snoke as the skinny man bellowed in rage.

The long red lightsaber clashed against the blue blade of Rey's staff lightsaber. Asarla swiftly pushed up the other end, and Rey smelled burning flesh as it seared against the side of Snoke's face. The blue blade melded against the ugly scar running down the Supreme Leader's forehead as he backed away, his black eyes narrowed in fury. Asarla brandished the lightsaber and jumped toward him aggressively. Snoke seemed surprised to see such hostility in his supposed pawn, and he was forced to defend himself against Asarla's agile attacks.

Kylo's hand tightened on Rey's, and she looked down at him as he whispered softly, his voice urgent and strained. "My grandfather started to bring balance to the Force." He grimaced in pain and licked his dry lips. "I need your Light, Rey."

She knew immediately what he meant as his gaze moved to Snoke, who was quickly gaining ground on Asarla. They both pushed forward mentally with the Force into each other's minds. The slice of darkness she always seemed to feel among the Light melded perfectly with the small glow of Light that pulsed within Kylo's Dark. Together, they shoved their way into Snoke's mind. The Supreme Leader's incredible power almost overwhelmed Rey and would have easily beaten her back individually. Combined with Kylo's strength, however, their flawless balance of the Force began chipping away at the darkness in the Supreme Leader.

Both of their hands raised as one, and they extended their joint control of the Force physically to shove Snoke onto his back as they continued their mental assault. Asarla kicked away the curved hilt of Snoke's lightsaber. The Supreme Leader snarled up at her through his twisted lips, and she held one of the blue blades to his skinny throat. Before the Togruta could do anymore, Rey and Kylo surged forward further with the Force in Snoke's dark mind.

Rey would not have believed it if she had not been present to see a strange dark glow envelope Snoke's tall, gaunt frame. The black glow radiated off him so intensely that Rey could not see the Supreme Leader through the dark for a moment before he shattered into thousands of pieces, as if the power of the balanced Force had smashed Snoke apart from the inside.

The room fell into silence as the three stared at each other in astonishment. Asarla slowly crossed over to Rey, a laugh of disbelief escaping her dark lips. The Togruta dropped to her knees next to them, and Rey felt a similar laugh rise up as she grinned and hugged her friend tightly. "You… You were amazing!"

She looked down at Kylo, ready to hug or kiss or do something to celebrate with him, but paused as she noticed he had not gotten up from where he had fallen. "Kylo?"

His dark eyes closed for a moment, and his gloved hands tightened into fists. "I can't feel my legs."


	37. Chapter 37

Rey's eyes froze on Kylo's back, but she did not have long to examine it before the door dented, and a hole shattered open in it from several blasts. Avin and Calfan ran inside, their dark clothing ripped in several spots. The female Knight turned and stood by the ruined door, her small staff hoisted defensively in front of her. Avin continued forward, faltering as he saw Kylo on the ground and Luke nearby. "We've gotta go before more Stormtroopers come for reinforcements."

Rey shook her head and looked up to see Asarla collecting the fallen lightsabers. Her grandmother's hung at her hips once again, and she was placing the two broken pieces of Kylo's lightsaber inside his helmet along with Luke's and Snoke's hilts. A scowl crossed Kylo's face as he noticed her using his mask as a basket. The fact that he did not comment told Rey how serious his wound was.

She looked back to Avin, who had blood dripping down his leg from his thigh. "Ren can't walk, and we can't leave Luke here."

Avin froze as his eyes moved to the gaping wound on Kylo's back. He looked almost more terrified for the head Knight than Rey felt, and she could tell by the way he looked between Kylo and Calfan that he was not prepared to make any major decisions.

Kylo started to make an attempt to sit up but seemed to think better of the movement as he took charge for the other Knight. "Ragnos, you need to carry Skywalker. You can use your blaster with one hand if you need to." Avin immediately moved over to the Jedi to follow the order as Kylo looked to Rey. "You're not strong enough yet to try any healing, and we don't have time. You also shouldn't be doing any fighting, so you're the best candidate to support me."

He looked annoyed at needing help, but Rey could already sense the presence of clones getting closer to the room. She knelt down, and he wrapped his left arm around her shoulders, pushing himself up with his free hand as she stood. Kylo let out a gasp of pain with the motion, and Rey staggered under his dense body. She felt the Dark Side thicken around him after a moment, and his weight seemed to lessen as Kylo pushed against the floor with the Force to help her bear his weight.

Rey pulled him to the door where Calfan stood, and the female Knight led the way out into the small room that was littered with Stormtrooper bodies. The other two Knights of Ren stood back to back, each holding their unique weapons. One carried what she could only describe as an oversized paddle with sharpened edges while the other had two disks in his hands that glowed and hummed almost like a lightsaber.

Avin stood next to Rey, holding Luke over his shoulders. "The coward Hux fled when he saw we were winning."

Kylo's free hand gestured to the side, and a thin section of the wall depressed and slid to the side. "That's the shortest route out of here."

Calfan and Avin disappeared through the door. Rey let Asarla go in before her and Kylo, and the other two Knights brought up the rear. They entered a pitch-black, narrow corridor that sent shivers through Rey's body, even though she had Kylo's furnace-like body heat close to her. They traveled as quickly as she could pull Kylo, but she soon heard synchronized footsteps approaching at a run behind them.

The Knight with the large paddle-like weapon held it up like a shield, and blaster fire seemed to absorb into it. The other threw one of his disks, and it buzzed through the air, cutting through two approaching Stormtroopers before it arched back into his hand. Rey kept moving with Kylo, knowing she could not do much with her injury and with the man across her shoulders. Kylo held out his hand, and the nearest lightsaber, which happened to be one of Asarla's, jumped into his hand. The white blade activated, and he twisted it in his hand to deflect blaster shots that made it past the two defending Knights. Rey grimaced as she was forced to hold up his full weight again as he defended them, but she could not bring her mind to concentrate fully on using the Force to help support him.

Her legs screamed in protest as she pulled him slowly down the hall, and Calfan slipped between the narrow space between her and the wall to stand behind them and deflect blasts with her staff. Asarla turned and ducked under the lightsaber to grab Kylo's other arm, and he sheathed the white blade as they neared a solid black wall where Avin stood with Luke. Kylo pressed the hand that was around Rey to the wall. A door opened under his command of the Dark Side, and they burst out into the snowy landscape of Mortis.

Rey found the sleek black Starfighter nearby, but it was several moments before the cloaked shuttle shimmered into view as the ramp lowered. Avin ran unevenly past them and climbed the ramp, soon returning without Luke. He stood by the ramp with his blaster at the ready as the three Force users neared him.

Kylo stifled a gasp of pain as his dragging boots caught on the edge of the ramp and moved his injured torso. Rey looked at his twisted expression, feeling her worry for him clench at her muscles as she heard the distinctive sounds of blaster fire reach her ears. Asarla suddenly cried out and fell forward. Kylo, who had been leaning partially on the Togruta, began to fall with her. Rey strained to keep them both upright, but his weight dragged her to the metal of the ramp with him. The three lightsabers that the Togruta had collected in Kylo's helmet scattered and rolled to the ground.

Poe's form cast a shadow over them as he approached to help. His eyes found each of their wounds, and Rey sensed his fear and rising panic. " _Fuck._ Where's everyone else?" His voice held a hint of concern as he helped Rey to her feet.

Poe's brown eyes froze on her left arm, and she immediately avoided his gaze. "Just help us in, please, Poe."

The pilot nodded and helped Asarla to her feet as Rey began collecting the fallen lightsabers. Blasts shot toward her as her boots hit the ground, and she immediately activated the first lightsaber she grabbed. Luke's green blade appeared in front of her, and she raised it to deflect the oncoming attacks as a mass of white Stormtrooper armor flooded from the base. She knelt quickly and tossed the two pieces of Kylo's lightsaber onto the shuttle, feeling her own hilt press reassuringly against her leg while she snatched up Snoke's curved hilt.

Two black figures sprinted toward them just ahead of the troopers, shouting to start the shuttle. She turned and ran up the ramp with Avin. The Knight took Kylo from the pilot's shoulder, and Poe jumped into the pilot's chair, flipping switches as quickly as possible as the engines revved to life. The shuttle began to rise with the ramp still open, and the two running Knights leapt onto it. Rey slammed the button to close the ramp, and the shuttle shuddered as blaster fire hit it. The moment the ramp sealed shut, Poe wrenched back a lever, and they shot forward at light speed before they had even cleared the planet.

Calfan and the Knight with the disk-like weapons leaned against the wall, panting heavily. The female Knight's helmet had a large crack at the right temple, and she tore it off, throwing it to the floor. Kylo let Avin help him sit against one of the walls, and he looked up at Calfan questioningly. Rey suddenly realized they were short one of the Knights of Ren. Calfan shook her head, and her staff dropped to the floor. "He's dead, Ren."

Kylo leaned his head back against the wall, his gloved hand moving to his back as he visibly flinched in pain. "You all shouldn't have come."

"Do you mean to say that their sacrifices weren't worth it, Ren?" Calfan glowered at the injured Knight and grabbed her staff in a swift movement.

Kylo blinked up at her, and Rey noticed his eyelids remained closed a little too long, almost like the night they had been drunk. He likely had not slept since he left Kiros. "I do appreciate that your reckless little mission allowed me to bring down Snoke, but it cost two lives and the use of my legs." His deep voice began to raise. "How do you propose we are going to take on Hux when he will have the full wrath of the First Order behind him?"

Rey stepped between the two Knights before they could begin shouting at each other. "Stop! Both of you. We all need to decide on where we are going to go so that we can rest."

Kylo's dark gaze turned to her. "If we hurry to Kiros, the city hospital can fit you with a hand. They have an… agreement not to report any lightsaber wounds to the First Order."

For the first time, Rey looked down to examine what was left of her arm. Her breath caught as she saw the severed end, and she felt as if the pain increased ten-fold as she stared at it. She had seen and cared for plenty of injures on Jakku – falling and accidently dislodging something heavy was an occupational hazard of a scavenger – but she had never dealt with the loss of a limb nor had she ever seen such an injury on someone else. Rey could not tear her eyes away from the stump, and she felt herself sway where she stood. She vaguely registered Avin catch her as she finally fainted out of pain and exhaustion.

()()()()

Images of Finn in the hover chair floated through Rey's mind. She could see her Stormtrooper friend lying unconscious in the snow, the lightsaber cut running up his back in a jagged diagonal. She suddenly saw Kylo in a chair identical to Finn's, his proud expression reduced to a shadow of its former self. His dark eyes glared up at her as he snarled, " _Why weren't you strong enough to help me?"_

A sharp pain in Rey's neck forced her eyes to snap open and focus upon Asarla's worried face hovering over her. Bright white lights shone above her, and Rey blinked several times as her eyes adjusted. The Togruta smiled softly and took her upper right arm, pulling her up into a sitting position with surprising strength. "Sorry for the rude awakening, but we need to go."

"Where –" Rey's question cut off as Asarla yanked her off the bed she had been lying on and practically dragged her to the door. It slid open, and Rey's vision lurched as the Togruta pulled her down the hall at a run. Like the room, the hall was brightly lit, and the blurred shapes of droids swarmed past her as Asarla turned several corners.

Rey barely processed where they were before they were suddenly outside, overlooking a strangely familiar marketplace. Her vision settled, and she noticed two combat-class shuttles landing at the edge of the city.

"This way." Asarla yanked her arm again, and Rey stumbled after her, soon tripping as the ground inclined underneath them. She fell to the ground, catching herself with her hands. Shiny metal at the end of her arm caught her attention. It flexed like her hand had used to, and she stared at it in amazement until Asarla tugged on her right arm again. "We need to get onto the shuttle and off planet before the First Order realizes Lord Ren is here."

 _Kylo._ All details of the fight on Mortis flooded back to Rey. Kylo Ren – the menacing warrior who was now the only master of lightsaber combat in the galaxy – could not move his legs. Because she had insisted that he needed saving from Snoke. She let Asarla pull her to her feet and staggered after the Togruta as guilt clawed at her chest. She watched a large black bag that was over Asarla's shoulder bounce against the woman's leg as they half-jogged toward the shuttle that rested near a formation of rocks.

Avin stood outside the shuttle without his helmet. As he saw them approach, he shouted over his shoulder and beckoned them inside as he climbed the ramp. Rey glanced behind her to see Stormtroopers swarming toward Kylo's house that stood on the opposite edge of the city. A small patrol was nearing the hospital, and she and Asarla hurried inside the shuttle.

"All right, everyone. I nicked enough fuel for us to get off this blasted planet and as far as the Outer Rim." Poe flipped several switches, and Rey felt the shuttle take off.

Calfan's cloak had been placed over Luke. The Knight herself sat in the co-pilot's seat, while Avin and the other Knight sat on either side of Kylo, who lay on the floor. He rested on his stomach, his long arms wrapped around a makeshift pillow that seemed to be a collection of Avin's cloak and some other black clothing that could have come from any of the Knights' outfits. One of the Knights had moved his non-responsive legs respectfully to lie in line with his torso. His shoulders rose and fell evenly as he slept.

Rey knelt beside Kylo and looked over the gaping wound that interrupted his dark clothing, wincing as the sharp tang of burnt flesh reached her nose. The laceration was not deep, but she knew from his lack of sensation that his spine was damaged. She had passed out from Force healing a bruise, and she knew she would need help if she wanted to fully mend him.

Finn had mentioned that his similar wound had healed incorrectly on its own, and she could not let that happen to Kylo, who, like Finn, had received the injury in her defense. She raised her hand over his injury and imagined his damaged nerves reconnecting as she concentrated upon the Force. Her energy quickly began to ebb away as she willed his injury to begin healing.

Kylo inhaled sharply and lifted his head, looking over his shoulder at Rey. She barely glanced at him as she continued to focus the Force on the Knight's spine. She continued her healing until she heard him gasp. Her concentration dropped, and she looked over at Kylo worriedly as she felt fatigue weigh down on her limbs. "Did that hurt?"

His head rested back down on the temporary pillow. "Not much… but I can feel my boots."

Rey grinned widely. "Can you move?" Kylo paused for a moment before giving a small shake of his head. She pressed a hand as reassuringly as she could on his shoulder, sensing his impatience and desperation to move. The hope she had held onto for so long on Jakku redirected into hope that she could eventually heal him enough so that he would soon be able to walk again. She tried to convey her hope onto Kylo, knowing how frustrated he was already getting.

She felt the shuttle leave hyperspace, and she looked up through the windows to see them entering an atmosphere. Rey moved to stand behind Poe's chair as she recognized the endless sands that rose into view. Jakku.


	38. Chapter 38

Rey walked through the dirty, rusted hall, skirting around a hole in the floor. The hull was inclined, and her legs began to ache as she continued to haul her treasure. She crossed over a bank of sand and turned to her right, entering a small room with three sand-worn cots stuffed next to each other.

Poe looked up from where he lay across one of the thin beds, tossing and catching what looked like a damaged power converter. "Hey. What'd you find?"

Rey pushed the pilot's legs off his cot to sit next to him with a sigh. "I found a room buried in the sand that other scavengers haven't plundered yet. I think Avin should be able to take everything to the outpost tomorrow."

They had landed on Jakku over a week before, and at Rey's suggestion, they hid themselves in the wreckage of a massive Star Destroyer. The ruins had been a favorite spot of hers during her many years as a scavenger, and she knew its halls like the back of her hand, since it had been a source to trade for portions. Kylo, who was familiar with the layout of Destroyers, had pointed them to where the officers' quarters used to be. They made a makeshift home in the wreckage by cleaning the sand away as best they could from three passable living quarters and a small common room. She shared a room with Asarla and Poe.

Asarla had taken as many supplies as she could from Kylo's house on Kiros while Rey had been in surgery for her hand, but even though they were careful to ration, they were quickly running through them with seven people. Rey had returned to scavenging so that they could trade for food. Avin had volunteered to take the parts to the Niima Outpost since Rey was likely wanted throughout the galaxy, even a backwater planet like Jakku. The blonde Knight's face was not known to the First Order, at least they believed, but they did not want him to suddenly become a regular at the outpost. He would make one large trade with Plutt that would hopefully sustain for a while.

Poe rummaged through the bag of parts Rey had brought back, nodding in approval at what he found. Rey fingered the glove that covered her new hand as she watched the pilot. Kylo had given the glove to her when she began scavenging as his right one had a large lightsaber burn in it from when his hilt had been broken. "What are the others doing?"

"Last I checked, the so-called Knights were having a secret meeting, but I don't really trust my memory right now." Poe had been helping her scavenge, but he did not have the agility that came with the years of experience Rey had under her belt. He fell the day before, and Calfan, their unofficial medic, had deemed it a concussion and forced him to rest.

Rey licked her dry lips as she stood from the bed. They were going through their water supplies too fast, especially since they frequently had to clean Kylo's wound. Rey knew of a water source not far from the Destroyer, but they had blown through the little money Asarla had brought to buy the liquid from the few men who controlled it. She planned to make a trip to her old homestead soon to retrieve the water she had been careful to store, but without a speeder, it would be at least a day's walk in the hot sun to get there. "I'll go find Ren. I didn't get a chance to heal him yesterday."

She left her bag of goods with Poe and left the room, following the noises of metal hitting metal that came from their small common room. Calfan and Asarla stepped slowly around each other in the middle of the space. The old chairs that made up the room had long since fallen against the back wall, and the floor sloped gently down toward them from the incline of the ship. The female Knight held her staff up to block a blow from the Togruta, who held a long metal rod that somewhat resembled the length and width of a lightsaber. They were careful to only use the actual weapons outside to avoid cutting open the already fragile walls and floors.

Kylo sat on the floor next to the door, following the duel with a practiced eye. He spent much of his time sleeping as his body healed, but awake, he was often restless. He could take a few steps at a time with the help of someone's shoulder, but he had already tried to move too much too soon and had ended up falling and jarring the wound further. He had not tried walking again without help after the three women of the group had scolded him for over an hour, and Rey presumed the fall had hurt him more than he let on.

The other Knights and Asarla had taken to practicing their fighting skills in front Kylo to give him something to do and keep his mind off of his inability to walk. "You're overstepping again. Remember what I told you about keeping close to your center." Asarla's stance changed at his comment, and Rey watched as Calfan struggled to find an opening to attack the Togruta. Rey had to admit that Kylo was a good teacher; Asarla had noticeably improved in her skill with a lightsaber.

Like the other men, Kylo's face and jaw sported dark stubble from a week without access to most hygienic supplies. She might have found it attractive if she could not see the apparent weight loss in his face. He ate less than the others with the claim that he those who were scavenging should have more, but Rey could sense through their bond that he was sinking into depression.

Kylo's intense gaze tore away from the fight as he noticed her by the door, and she took it as an invitation to crouch next to him. "Ready for a healing session?"

He nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, allowing her to pull him up. He had initially refused anyone's help, but after he had gotten tired of lying in his room for over a day (Asarla had won the bet for how long he could hold out), he reluctantly let someone help him around. Rey suspected he preferred to have her help him since she could sense more than the others when a movement hurt his wound.

She pulled him to the door and let him take several agonizingly slow steps down the hall to practice before she saw him grit his teeth against the pain and stop. Kylo and Avin's room was the one closest to the common room, and it did not take long for her to pull him the rest of the way to the dented door. He pushed it open with the Force, and when Rey saw Avin was not present, she helped him inside and onto the cot she knew was his. A small round window without glass rested in the center of the back wall, giving the only light available in the otherwise dark room. It was the only one of the three living quarters they inhabited that did not have a gaping hole somewhere in the floor.

Kylo unbuckled the thick black belt that they used as a makeshift bandage around his wound and tossed it to the floor before he moved to lay on his stomach. Rey gently moved his legs onto the cot and sat next to him, tugging his shirt up to reveal the angry red gash on his back.

Her gloved cybernetic hand rose over it, and she unconsciously wrapped her right hand around his as their minds touched with the Force. The Dark melded seamlessly with the Light, and Rey focused their balanced energy toward healing Kylo's damaged nerves.

Coupled with Kylo's strength and experience, Rey could focus the Force on healing for nearly twice as long as she could on her own. Even so, Kylo had never needed to heal such a wound before, and it was taking them longer than either of them wanted to reconnect and fix his wrecked spinal column. When she finally relinquished her control over the Force, black spots danced in her vision.

It was only their third healing session since Rey had helped him on the shuttle, and they were already getting better at efficiently combining their power and balancing the Force. They rarely, if ever, spoke during the sessions – not that Kylo spoke much since he had been injured – but she could sense their bond strengthen each time. In the close proximity of their little home, she could now sense if he was asleep or if his emotions shifted dramatically, which had only really happened once when Avin had irritated him enough to briefly rise him out of his melancholy mood.

Kylo turned onto his side, managing to turn his hips on his own before he was forced to move his legs with his hands. Rey steadied herself with her hands in the either side of her and settled her gaze into the black bag that rested on the floor near Kylo's cot. It was the same one that Asarla had used to take supplies from Kiros, and Rey noticed a data chip was falling out of it. She reached down and picked it up, seeing one of the printed books that had once been in his room at the bottom of the bag. "Why do you have these?"

Kylo's dark eyes opened to find what she referred to, and he sighed softly. "I happen to enjoy reading, Rey."

She rolled her eyes and picked up the book, feeling its weight in her hands. "I've gathered that, but why did you have Asarla collect this for you?"

Kylo ran a hand through his dark hair. "Luke and Snoke are no more. The only information we can get about the Force is from what I already know and what has been recorded."

Rey did not miss that he used 'we' instead of 'I,' but her attention dropped to the two pieces of his lightsaber that the bag had been covering. She felt the crystal that it contained call gently to her through the Force because of her growing bond with Kylo. She looked up at him questioningly. "I want to use Snoke's saber to repair mine, but Ms. Tano still has it."

Rey studied Kylo's weary face. "You should focus on healing first before you worry about that."

He gave a soft hum in acknowledgement, and his eyes closed again. He was as exhausted as she felt after their healing, and she lay down next to him without thinking, her own eyes closing. She let her mind drift, falling asleep next to the injured Knight.

" _Snoke is using you for your power. When he gets what he wants, he'll crush you." Han stepped closer to him, his eyes desperately searching his son's face. "You know it's true." Of course Snoke was using him. Kylo was more than intelligent enough to see that. But he was using Snoke, too._

" _It's too late." The events at the Jedi Academy, his leadership of the Knights of Ren, Luke's disappearance had all pushed him further into the Dark Side. He was in so deep now, so consumed by the Dark and the deeds he had done to prove his loyalty to Snoke, that he did not know if he would ever be able to finish what he had set out to do._

" _No, it's not. Leave here with me. Come home." Han was so close to him now, closer than he had been in over twenty years. "We miss you."_

_The Light pulled at his core again, and Kylo forced it down as his father gazed pleadingly at him. This was not supposed to happen so soon. He had tried to avoid both Han and Leia in hopes that they would never cross his path while Snoke still pulled the strings of the galaxy. "I'm being torn apart. I want to be free of this pain." The words blurted from his mouth before he could stop them. Suddenly, he was a youngling again, begging his mother not to send him to the Jedi to be trained while Han stood by, unwilling to begin yet another argument with Leia._

_He knew what Snoke wanted. He knew to fully gain his trust and allow himself to succumb to the Dark Side, he needed to end Han Solo. But the Light tugged at him again; its call stronger since he had encountered the scavenger. "I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it." He could not allow his work, his mission to bring down Snoke from the inside, to fail. Not after he had done so much. Had sacrificed so much. "Will you help me?"_

" _Yes. Anything."_

_The helmet dropped to the bridge with a loud clang, and Kylo took the lightsaber from his hip, holding it out. He looked into his father's eyes, and his resolve faltered. Han had tried to be a good father. He had taught him the basics of piloting, had let him explore inside the Millennium Falcon, and had tried to respect his wishes as a boy to not become a Jedi._

_Kylo's hands tightened around his lightsaber. Snoke would hunt him down until everyone he had a scrap of feelings for – his mother, his father, Chewie, the girl on Jakku – were dead and then he would torture him until he was no longer himself. He had experienced it before to a lesser extent. It would be better to die now and let his father go than face the inevitable reality._

_The top of the saber began to direct toward himself, and Han grabbed it, his head shaking to the side minutely. Kylo sensed that Han knew his conflict. The light of the draining sun died away, and he hesitated, knowing he would not be able to stop the Starkiller from firing at the Ileenium system. Acceptance flooded inexplicably from his father. Before Kylo could move, Han wrenched the lightsaber toward his chest and pressed down on it, activating the crackling blade through his body._

_A scream that was not his own sounded throughout the chamber as horror flooded Kylo's mind. He took a step forward in shock, his eyes searching his father's face. Somehow he knew. Han shot first to save his son the consequences of choosing himself._

" _Thank you…" he whispered as he pulled the lightsaber out of his father. Han's hand brushed against the side of his face for the last time, just as he had when he had been a boy. Ben Solo. His father fell to the side, and Kylo stared unblinking at the grated floor. He distantly heard a Wookie's call, and unbearable agony tore at his side._

Rey woke with a jolt, her hand clutching at her side for the injury that was not there. Kylo had managed to sit up and had a hand tangled through his hair. He turned his head over his shoulder. "Did you sense that?"

She stared at the profile of his face, trying to process the memory she had inadvertently seen through their bond as they slept. She sat up and pulled her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. "You didn't kill him…"

Kylo frowned slightly and turned his torso to meet her gaze, grimacing as the movement pulled at his wound. "You weren't supposed to see that, but that's not what I meant." He used his hands to pull his legs over the side of the cot. He ran a hand over his knee, and Rey knew he was making sure he could still feel the sensation in his leg. He finally looked up at her, and the bright Jakku sunlight coming through the small port window seemed to lighten his eyes to an almost hazel color. "Did you feel the disturbance in the Force?"


	39. Chapter 39

Rey tossed and turned in her small cot. She was used to sleeping on an uncomfortable bed, but Kylo's face kept swimming in her mind. Every detail she learned about him only served to further complicate her feelings and relationship toward him. He was not all that he seemed. She could acutely sense his presence nearby, and she could tell he was still awake.

He had grown distant after he felt the disturbance, and he claimed he wanted to mediate. The only good thing about his injury was that he was learning patience, although that may have been due to the fact that he no longer had a lightsaber to hack through things to deal with his anger. Rey suspected that was why Asarla had not given him Snoke's lightsaber yet to fix his own.

Finally giving up on sleep, Rey got to her feet and walked quietly past her two sleeping roommates. Poe let out a loud snore as she stepped out of the room. Her bare feet tapped lightly against the metal, and she felt grains of sand dig into her soles as she entered the small common room.

She planned on taking apart the nonfunctional gaming table to take her mind off of a certain Force sensitive when she saw the man himself lying across one of the couches that rested against the back wall. His long legs dangled over the side, and one of the pieces of his lightsaber hilt hovered in front of his face as he took it apart with the Force.

The pieces fell into a pile on Kylo's chest as he turned his head to look at her. Rey approached him, adjusting her stride against the descending slope of the inclined floor. "How'd you get out here?"

He shrugged and slowly shifted to sit up, using his hands to move his legs to the floor. The metal pieces slid gently into an organized pile at his side. "With help from the wall and the Force. I can hold my weight better since the last healing session."

Rey sat next to him and picked up a piece of the broken lightsaber, examining it closely. Kylo leaned back against the couch, his eyes closing briefly. She broke their silence with a soft voice. "What do you think the disturbance in the Force was from?"

Kylo shook his head, opening his eyes to look at her. "I don't think it's another Force sensitive. The only other I know of is Leia Organa, but her presence has never been that strong. I haven't felt anything like it." His eyes roamed her face. "Why couldn't you sense it? You were in my head…"

"I didn't mean to be," Rey quickly answered. She got the impression that he was sometimes uncomfortable with their growing bond, especially when it invaded his privacy. "I'm not sure how to control it."

"I had hoped Luke would be able to explain the bond, but there wasn't time." He ran a hand through his hair with a sigh, and they fell into silence again.

Eventually, Rey's curiosity got the better of her, and she asked, "What did you want to do?" Kylo tilted his head to the side in confusion. "When you were a boy. You didn't want to be a Jedi."

One of his dark eyebrows raised, and he gave a small shrug. "Does that really matter? My training has made me who I am now."

Rey let out a long sigh and leaned back next to Kylo. "You know more about me since you left me on Jakku. If we're going to make full use of this Force bond, I should know more about you."

Kylo paused as he considered her words and then straightened his back. She did not miss the small wince cross his face at the movement. "Even as a youngling, I didn't want to live in the shadow of my family."

He had never spoken to her about his past apart from the events at the Jedi Academy, and something told Rey to remain silent so as to not stop Kylo from talking. His voice was softer as he finally continued. "I spent most of my time reading as other children seemed to avoid me. It wasn't until Luke tested me and found my midichlorian count that I was told I had a responsibility to become a Jedi."

His tone took on a bitter quality, and Rey decided it was best to steer him away from his childhood for the time being. "What are midichlorians?"

"Tiny beings that live in our cells." Rey snorted and looked into his face to find the joke. He frowned at her and shook his head. "I'm serious. They allow us to access the Force. Everyone has them, but Force-sensitives have them in a great enough number to channel the Force."

Rey tried to wrap her mind around tiny beings in her body that allowed her to use the Force. She must have looked confused, for Kylo's mouth slid into a small smile, and he let out a low chuckle. Rey found herself grinning despite the fact that he was laughing at her. He had not looked remotely happy since their encounter at Avin's home. "Try not to think too hard about it. Just know the more midichlorians someone has, the more sensitive they are to the Force."

"And you have a lot, then? To make Luke insist on training you?"

Kylo nodded rubbed his fingers over the stubble on his jaw. Rey could sense irritation from him, although she was not sure if it steamed from her questions or the fact that he preferred to be clean shaven. She decided it was likely both.

His gaze turned quickly to the open doorway, and Rey looked up to see two beams of blue light reaching the hall floor. The beams were dispersed, telling her that their origins were a fair distance away from them. She focused on the Force and sensed Kylo's overwhelming presence next to her as she reached out to find who was coming. She did not recognize the feel of the two approaching strangers she felt, but Kylo's expression turned dark. "Stormtroopers."

The hairs on Rey's arms and neck rose as a cold settled through her, and she stood immediately, grabbing her lightsaber from her leg. "Are there more?"

His voice was barely above a whisper as he nodded, his gaze distant as he reached out with the Force. "Two on the level below us, four at the old hangar nearby." He paused, and Rey watched him dig his nails into his palm. "Their ship is near our shuttle."

Rey swore under her breath in the language of Jakku and walked toward the doorway, intending to take out the Stormtroopers with her lightsaber. The beams of light grew stronger as she approached the door, and she suddenly felt her legs freeze underneath her. She looked back to Kylo, who pressed a long finger to his lips and shook his head. She glared at him, but he did not relinquish the Force on her as the two troopers reached the door of the common room.

His pale hand rose, and Rey took a step forward as Kylo's attention directed to the white armored soldiers. They both fell sideways into the room, sliding down the inclined floor. Rey kicked their blasters away from them, and they rose by their necks at Kylo's command. He stared at them intently as he asked, "Is this a random search?"

Rey could hear gasping sounds through the helmets of both troopers, but they otherwise did not respond to the question. His hand lifted, pulling the troopers higher off the floor. Kylo's face tightened, and the Dark Side thickened in the air around Rey. A muffled cry of agony emitted from the helmet of one of the Stormtroopers as Kylo leaned forward. The troopers fell in heap onto the floor, and Rey did not need the Force to tell her they were dead.

Kylo pulled himself to his feet with difficulty and swayed slightly. Rey let him lean on her shoulder as he growled, "They were tipped off that an unknown shuttle was seen parked here a few days ago. One of your fellow scavengers, no doubt."

Rey had seen some other scavengers around the gigantic wreckage, but she had not known any had gotten near their hideout. No doubt Unkar Plutt had jumped at the chance to get on the First Order's better graces since he had let Finn escape the planet. She helped him walk to the door, keeping her focus on the Force to sense for any more approaching Stormtroopers. "We need to wake the others. I know where we can go."

()()()()

They moved slowly down the dark hall as a group. Rey led the way, considering she knew the labyrinth of broken corridors the best. Kylo held onto to Avin's shoulder, the big black bag around his lean body. She knew his helmet and broken lightsaber rested inside along with the data chip and some food they had hastily grabbed. His free hand clutched at the hilt of Snoke's lightsaber.

The other two Knights of Ren held up the rear of their group with Asarla and Poe. The pilot did not know how to walk quietly, and his footsteps made more noise than the rest of them combined, including Kylo's heavy limping. Rey's entire body was tense as they turned a corner, and the cool desert night air touched her face as her feet dug into the sand outside. "We'll have to take a longer route than I'm used to, but I think we can get around the Stormtroopers without them noticing."

The other members of the group nodded in agreement, and they began trudging up a dune of sand. Rey reached the top and took a step forward to continue before she looked back to see the others only halfway up the sand. Poe moved to help Kylo's weakened legs up the sand, but none of them were used to walking in the uneven terrain. Rey rubbed the back of her neck. Their trip would only take her about twenty minutes. With the group and the injured Knight, it would take them far longer. This would be a long night.

Rey slid down the other side of the dune with practiced ease and took several paces forward impatiently. Asarla slipped as the sand gave way underneath her, and she slid down the dune, landing next to Rey. The Togruta rubbed her legs as they undoubtedly burned from the sand and got to her feet. She glanced at Rey with a sigh. "Lord Ren is in a lot of pain."

Rey let her attention move to her bond with Kylo. She could sense his intense concentration on the Force as he pushed back the pain, but she still felt the fierce throbbing in her back for a moment as she shared his discomfort. He met her gaze as he reached her with Poe and Avin, but he did not comment. Of course he was going to suffer through the pain on his own like the stubborn fool Rey knew him to be. He likely would have insisted walking on his own if Jakku was not covered in sand.

A TIE fighter raced overhead, and Rey instinctively ducked as she watched it pass. It continued straight, and she breathed a sigh of relief as they continued moving forward through the sand. She welcomed the familiar ache in her legs as she walked, but she could hear the hard breathing coming from the men and women behind her as the minutes passed. Asarla suddenly stopped in her tracks and looked at the sand with a strange expression. Her small hand raised, and Rey felt the Togruta's Force powers, which had begun to shift to a more neutral feel since they had left Mortis. The sand beneath their feet began to smooth and flatten at Asarla's command.

The evenness quickened their pace, and Kylo nodded at Asarla in approval. "Creative use of the Force."

The Togruta's dark lips spread into a grin at the praise, and she continued to smooth the sand underneath their feet. They slowed to climb up hills, but otherwise continued at a brisk clip to put as much distance between them and the Stormtrooper squadron that scoured the Star Destroyer.

The sun began to lighten the sky, and Rey paused at the top of a dune as a sight she had thought she would never see again rose before her: a toppled AT-AT walker. Home. She slid down the dune as she had thousands of times and practically raced through the sand. She stopped by the belly of the machine and took several slow steps inside, suddenly afraid that other scavengers had decided to raid her homestead in her absence.

A layer of dust tickled her nose, and she heard Asarla's light sneeze as the Togruta entered behind her. Rey felt her shoulders unclench with relief as she found all of her scant possessions still in the same places she had left them. The small bowl and plate sat on the table next to the little doll she had made when she was about ten. The metal bedframe she had scavenged from the Star Destroyer years ago rested against the wall to her right.

She had changed almost beyond recognition since she had last stepped foot in the little home. She had been no one. A scavenger among the many that inhabited Jakku, struggling to find enough prizes hidden in the wreckages to put portions in her mouth long enough for her family to come find her. But everything had changed. She carried a double-sided lightsaber instead of her staff, and the man who had left her in the desert with Plutt was teaching her Force techniques. She had seen and done too much to ever be able to return to her old life.

Kylo stepped slowly up the short ramp with Avin, and Rey sensed a jumble of emotions that mirrored her own as he took in the small room. His dark eyes fixed onto the thousands of ticks covering the back wall, and he froze. Avin glanced at him questioningly as he helped his fellow Knight sit slowly onto the bed. Kylo continued to stare at the marks as the rest of their group squished into the small space.

Rey began to feel uncomfortable with so many people in her space. She had only ever shared it with BB-8, who had beeped endless questions to her until she had threatened to shut him off for the night. The space was the most private part about her, and she felt as if she were bearing her soul to the small group gathered inside. At least they were quiet, unlike BB-8, as they were tired from the early awakening and long trek.

Poe wondered over to the table and picked up the little doll, grinning as he tugged lightly at the orange cloth. "It's a pilot! Did you get this when you were young?"

Rey snatched the doll from his hand and clutched it to her chest, not caring how possessive she seemed. "Don't touch that." When Poe gave her an incredulous look, she glanced at the other members of their group. She did not care that Kylo and Calfan had sunk onto her bed, but her little doll had been a companion to help her through her countless sleepless nights. She did not want others touching it. "I, uh, I think I have some water stored near the neck."

She could not move her legs quickly enough as she raced down the ramp and out onto the sand. She began walking around the leg of the AT-AT and glanced around as one of the Knights of Ren caught up with her. "Ren told me to help you." She had never learned his name, for she had been waiting to catch it from one of the other Knights, but they never referred to him by name when she had been around. At this point, she was a little too embarrassed to ask him.

She led him to the neck of old machine and pried open a metal panel. Three jugs of water rested inside a compartment that had once held some electrical controls. She had paid for the extra water with the scavenged controls and stored them there. She once broke her leg in a bad fall and nearly died from dehydration before one of her fellow scavengers had found her trying to get to her speeder and took pity on her. She had stockpiled as much water and portions that she could manage in case she came across another set-back.

Rey shoved her doll into one of her pockets and grabbed one of the jugs with both hands, straining a little under the weight. The Knight took another jug, and they began walking back around the AT-AT leg. Rey's thoughts were consumed with the look on Kylo's face when he had entered her home, and she did not see the Stormtrooper until the Knight next to her was thrown back with a blast to his chest. The water exploded around her, and Rey threw her own jug to the ground, snatching her lightsaber from her leg again. Three Stormtroopers rushed toward her, and her twin blue blades cut through two. A blast cut through her calf before she could deflect it, and she dropped to one knee, pushing back the third trooper with the Force.

The rising sunlight reflected off the silver armor of another Stormtrooper, and Rey squeezed her eyes shut as the light temporarily blinded her. The butt of a blaster smashed into her hand, and she felt her lightsaber drop out of her hand. She opened her eyes, blinking past floating stars in her vision as the Stormtrooper yanked her head back by her the knots in her hair. Rey punched her cybernetic hand forward into the trooper's stomach. The trooper gave a distinctly female grunt and kicked her in return. The breath whooshed out of her lungs, and Rey struggled to grab a breath as a needle pricked into her neck.

Her last thought before unconsciousness took her was of Kylo.

**AN: Please leave a note if you feel so inclined! Thanks for reading!**


	40. Chapter 40

Rey's hearing returned to her first. The sounds of heavy footsteps surrounded her, but her foggy mind could not make out who they came from. Kylo could not walk that quickly yet, and Asarla could not make that much noise to save her life. It was Poe, she decided, who never could muffle the sounds of his shoes.

Her eyelids felt heavy, but she could make out some light through them. Had she overslept? Usually to beat the other scavengers, she would try to be up before the sun.

She tried to raise her hand to rub it over face, but two heavy pieces of steel only allowed her to move her arm up a few centimeters. She forced her eyes open as adrenaline shot through her system.

Rey was all too familiar with the table she was strapped onto. It was an exact replica of the one that had held her the first time she had seen Kylo's face. She pulled at the metal desperately and tried to focus on the Force to make them open. Her powers were strangely out of reach, and she suddenly realized how odd it was that she could not sense the Knight's familiar presence through their bond.

"Ah. Finally. The scavenger deigns to join us." General Hux walked around the upright table, his hands clasped behind his perfectly straight back. His thin lips curled into a sneer, and Rey vaguely noticed dark circles under his eyes. "You were out longer than the other. We thought you might not be strong enough."

" _You_ don't look strong enough," Rey hissed softly, tugging with as much strength as possible at the restraints.

Hux's lips twisted into a sneer, and he took a step away from her as a young man with a black coat rolled a small table over to her. The man rolled up his sleeves and began rubbing a thin wet cloth over the inside of Rey's elbow. She tried to jerk away, but the restraints held her in place. "Is this some sort of scare tactic? Where's Ren?"

Neither Hux nor the man responded to her, and the man picked up what looked like a long, thin needle. His eyes met hers for an instant, and she could read sympathy within the brown orbs. "This will hurt less if you don't try to struggle."

Rey shook her head as the man leaned to her arm, and she immediately began twisting and jerking her elbow as much as possible to prevent him from sticking the needle in her flesh. She raised her hand from the wrist and tried shoving him back with the Force. Her head was pounding enough to tell her she had been drugged, but to her surprise, the man slid backwards with her weakened powers.

Hux growled from where he stood and looked over his shoulder to address someone Rey could not see. "The drugs interfere with the tests. Blindfold her while we take samples."

The Force was sharpening within Rey, and she narrowed eyes at Hux. Kylo had never given her lessons on mind tricks, but she had successfully tricked a Stormtrooper to release her once. Conveying as much of her will as she could muster, she growled softly, "Let. Me. Go."

Hux barked a short laugh and walked behind the table Rey was strapped against. "The Supreme Leader trained me to resist Force mind tricks against Ren himself. You cannot hope to compare against his power."

Another First Order member approached Rey and pressed her hands down against the table before she could respond, and her vision went black as a blindfold was roughly tied over her eyes. Panic rose in her chest, and she pulled wildly in the restraints.

" – Ren's not awake. Just do it."

The sound of Kylo's name caused Rey to freeze, and she suddenly felt a sharp jab in the crook of her elbow. She yelled in pain, hearing Hux's snide laugh behind her. "Don't take too much just yet. Ren has said she's more sensitive than Organa."

 _Organa? General Organa?_ Rey stiffened, and she concentrated on the Force to try to detect Kylo nearby. The faint presence of the hundreds of non-Force users registered in her mind as a faint murmur behind a beacon of light. Disappointment panged within her as the Force signature did not belong to Kylo's characteristic dark waves, but it did feel vaguely familiar. She somehow could tell the Force user was untrained, and she realized Leia Organa was somewhere within the First Order base.

What had happened in their roughly ten days of induced exile on Jakku? Kylo was either not on the base, or his Force powers were being concealed. Asarla likewise could not be detected. Fury lanced through her body at the lack of answers, and she heard two men yell as she felt a tugging sensation at her elbow.

"That should be enough for now. Drug her again."

Rey winced at the sharp poke of a needle that followed the order, and her connection to the Force dimmed almost instantly. Light reached her eyes again, and she saw a red droplet on the interior of her elbow. The young man that she had initially pushed back with the Force wheeled a small table past her that held several vials of blood. The hairs on the back of her neck rose.

Hux stood in front of her as the rest of the First Order members cleared out. "Don't worry, scavenger. I'll send a visitor in to see you soon."

()()()()

Rey drifted in and out of consciousness for several hours as her body fought through the drug in her system. Her sluggish waking thoughts filled with worry for Kylo and influenced her dreams. Visions of him lying dead from an execution, scenes of his own lightsaber cutting through his middle, and pictures of him tortured senseless with bruises covering his pale skin plagued her sleep.

Vaguely, she knew that she would have sensed the loss of such a powerful Force user, let alone one she was bonded with, but she could not stop her anxiety from concocting the worst vision of his fate. He had betrayed Snoke, and she did not imagine the First Order would take kindly to that.

Rey tried again to concentrate upon the Force through the haze of the drug, but only succeeded in hearing the door behind her open. Slow footsteps echoed through the room, accented by the sharp click of metal striking the floor with every other step. The sound made no sense to her until the person came into her view.

He wore a crisp black officer's uniform, not unlike the one Hux always had, with the First Order insignia emblazoned upon the shoulder. A gloved hand clutched a sleek black cane tipped with metal clicked against the floor. Rey's eyes rose to the face. The last expression she had seen on it was pure fury. Now, it only looked weary.

Finn.

Rey could not form a coherent sentence, and she felt her jaw move several times before she closed it, settling for a glare at who she thought was her friend.

Finn took several moments to speak, and he kept his brown eyes set on the floor. "Are you okay?"

Her eyes flicked down to the line of blood that slowly made its way down her arm, and she gave a minute shake of her head as the questions spilled out. "Where's Ren? What happened? What did they do to me? What in the _galaxy_ are you doing in a First Order uniform?"

Finn leaned on his cane, his gaze moving to the wall on Rey's left. "The Supreme Leader is gone, and Hux…" He trailed off as if he was not sure if he should continue. "Hux is in full control of the Order. He offered to provide the best medical treatment possible for my back along with a full pardon… if… if I gave him a way to… to take General Organa… and told him… where you would likely be hiding…"

His eyes closed, and Rey shook her head quickly. Finn had been so desperate to get away from the First Order. She could not fathom a world in which he would willingly come back and betray the Resistance, a cause that he had believed in. The cause to bring down the First Order.

She wondered if their argument had pushed him into his decision. She could still feel his fury at her admission of her feelings for Kylo, his rage at the Knight for taking away his independence. Had he been so desperate to walk again that he had abandoned all reason?

Finn's eyes finally met hers. "I'm sorry, Rey… Do you have any idea what it's like being confined to a chair at all times?"

Rey's eyes narrowed, and her jaw clenched. "Somewhat. Ren took a similar injury, but he didn't come crawling back to the First Order just to walk again."

Finn hesitated, and his hand tightened on the cane. "So he did turn traitor…"

Rey's stomach flipped, and she realized she had inadvertently given Kylo away. The First Order did not know for certain that he had turned traitor, just that the Knights of Ren had attacked. They could have claimed they had destroyed Snoke and captured Kylo, which would have saved the Knight from inevitable torture or death. Her visions swam to her mind again, and she tried forcing them back as she dug her nails into her palm. "Where is he, Finn?"

Finn shook his head, and Rey was surprised to see tears swimming in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, Rey… Please, you left, and Poe… well, he was helping me cope, but he ran off to help the man who paralyzed me…"

He crossed the distance between them with limping steps, and he stood just inches away from her, his voice low and urgent. "I stole an antidote pill that you need to swallow." Rey suddenly felt a small pill press against her lips, and she refused to open her mouth as she was unable to access the Force to analyze Finn's truth. He sighed softly, and his words were barely audible. "The guard will change shifts in about an hour. Ren's in a med-bay on the lowest level, about twenty stories down."

Rey stared at him distrustfully but allowed him to press the antidote pill into her mouth, thankful for the information that Kylo was indeed alive. She swallowed it, wincing as she felt the dry coating move down her throat. Finn brushed his thumb over the small round wound on her elbow, smearing blood on her skin. "He's is harvesting midi-chlorians."

The tiny beings that lived in everyone's cells. The hairs on Rey's body stood on end. If Kylo was right, the more midi-chlorians someone possessed, the more sensitive to the Force they were. Which meant…

"Hux is trying to use the Force."

**AN: Thanks for reading!**


	41. Chapter 41

The restraints snapped open at Rey’s command, and she stepped down, letting out a long breath as her vision spun for a moment. Her stomach clenched in hunger, and she wondered how long it had been since her small rationed meal on the wrecked Star Destroyer. She was certainly no stranger to skipping meals – sometimes for days at a time – but she had begun to get used to regular food.

She pressed her palm to the wall for a moment and shook her head. Now was not the time for thinking of food. She needed to find Kylo and get him out before Hux did something terrible to him, not to mention find the other members of their little renegade group.

The sound of boots hitting the floor outside her cell reached her, and she moved close to the door, listening as the Stormtroopers changed guard. She reached out tentatively with the Force, sensing the old guards marching away. Once she had judged them a good distance, she glanced at the door and willed it to open at her command.

It remained firmly shut.

She frowned and waved her hand to increase her focus over the Force, trying to imagine the lock in the door releasing. _Shit._ Finn likely had not noticed anything over the door to prevent the use of the Force.

Rey froze as she heard footsteps approaching, and she darted back to the table, lowering the restraints with the Force far enough to look like they were still locked around her. The door slid open behind her, and she waited until she could see the First Order member flanked by two Stormtroopers. She jerked her chin up harshly, and the three flew several feet into the air and slammed against the wall. She jumped off of the table and pulled one of the trooper’s blasters into her hand, smashing the butt of it against the first man’s head. He crumpled to the floor, and Rey pushed the table full of empty vials and needles into one trooper who started to get to his feet. She concentrated on the Force and willed the Stormtroopers to sleep.

Clutching the blaster, Rey slipped through the open door and moved quickly down the hall, keeping her focus on the Force to sense the presence of others. The low lighting of the halls hummed ominously as she walked slowly, and the black walls gave her an odd feeling of familiarity. She could feel Leia nearby, so she followed the threads of the Force toward her, sensing a strange connection to the Force that she had not felt before.

She pressed her back to the wall and breathed deeply, sensing the faint presence of four non-Force users next to the light that seemed to shine from the Resistance general. She knew Kylo would likely just shoot or stab the Stormtroopers and be done with the matter, but she preferred to save as many lives as possible, even if they worked for the First Order. The value of preserving life had been one of the last things Luke had taught her.

Rey threw her hand out around the corner and shoved the guards backwards with the Force. They crumpled into a pile, and the nearest trooper began to pull himself up before she slammed her hand downwards toward the floor. The trooper fell on top of his comrades as if something heavy had dropped on him and went still with the others.

She lifted the blaster and shot at the keypad next to the door several times before the lock released. Leia Organa sat upright in a chair directly in the center of the room. Her wrists were shackled down on the arms of the chair, and glowing chains wrapped around her ankles. Her sleeves both rumpled above her elbows, revealing dark bruises that surrounded numerous puncher marks. Despite her situation, the general glared defiantly at Rey until she recognized her. “Rey. I heard them talking about some prisoners. I’m assuming my son didn’t turn you to the First Order?”

Rey gave a soft shake of her head and willed the restraints on Leia to open. “No, but we need to get your son.” The cuffs on the general’s ankles snapped open. “He… can’t walk well, and I doubt the Order will let him live for long.”

Worry spiked from Leia as she stood and walked briskly to the door. “You’ll tell me later, then, I assume?”

Rey followed her into the hall, holding up the blaster as Leia took another from one of the Stormtroopers that lay on the floor. The familiarity hit her again as she reached out with the Force to see if she could find Kylo’s presence. She glanced back at Leia, and suddenly had a flash of memory of four Knights of Ren. The base was on Mortis. Her strange connection to the Force was amplified by the planet. The Dark Side was still palpable, but not overwhelming as it had been with Snoke’s presence.

Rey pressed forward with the Force, trying to figure out exactly how many floors down they needed to go. A faint signature, barely stronger than those of the non-sensitive Stormtroopers, touched her senses. Weak and distant though the signature was, Rey identified it unmistakably as Kylo Ren.

Relief flooded through her, and she glanced at Leia with a grin as they walked. “We need to get down to the lower lev – “

She smacked into a small being and immediately lashed out with the Force to shove the person back. A short Togruta with familiar white pigments groaned and rubbed her forehead from where she fell against the wall. Lavender beads that Rey had bartered for only a few weeks ago – although it seemed like a lifetime – slipped haphazardly over a striped horn.

Asarla got to her feet, blinking rapidly as she pushed back the beads. “Good to see you too.”

Rey grinned and hugged her friend for a brief moment before she glanced at Leia. One or two people could travel quietly and hide in small spaces, but three was cutting it too close for comfort. She wanted to ask the Togruta to go looking for the other members of their group. Kylo had shown Asarla many techniques with the Force, but she did not think they should separate until they had the Knight. Besides, they were not bonded like she and Kylo were, and she doubted she could find her again in the massive base.

She beckoned down the hall and whispered as they walked. “How’d you get out?”

Asarla shrugged and let a small smirk pull at her dark lips. “I just forgot to tell them I can use the Force.”  

Leia grabbed Rey’s shoulder and pulled her against the wall, cutting off her next question. Asarla ducked next to them as a patrol of Stormtroopers marched past an adjacent hallway. “Sounds like a turbolift is nearby.”

She only had ever gotten in old shafts of nonfunctional lifts, so she was more familiar with the mechanics than the actual sounds they made. She trusted Leia’s knowledge, however, and gripped the stolen blaster, wishing she had her lightsaber. “Let’s go, then.”

Asarla grabbed her shoulder this time and shook her head. “We need to call it to this floor, and it might take a while if it's elsewhere.”

Rey sighed and peered around the corner, seeing a button on the wall near a door she assumed would lead to the lift. Her eyes narrowed as she focused on the Force, and she pushed her hand forward. The button depressed for a moment, followed by a soft ding. The doors slid open, and Rey was about to rush forward when a group of First Order officers stepped out. “ – showing positive results. The research team believes a combination of Ren’s and the girl’s will work.”

Rey not hear the rest of the conversation as the officers turned a corner. Asarla ran forward into the turbolift as the doors began to close. Rey followed her in with Leia, and Rey stared blankly at the panel of buttons on the side. She had never ridden in a lift, although she could likely figure it out if they had more time. “He’s… twenty-one floors down.”

Leia nodded and pressed one of the last buttons on the panel. The doors slid shut, and Rey felt an uncomfortable drop in the floor as they began to descend. The turbolift moved faster than she had expected, and it was just slowing to a stop at their floor when the lights flickered off. The wail of an alarm sounded, and Rey swore.

“We’ll be sitting tree goats if they find us in here.” Asarla’s musical voice sounded panicked as she pulled at the sealed door.

Rey focused all her concentration upon the Force to move the door, and she felt Asarla and Leia’s combined powers pull with her. The door slid choppily to the side as if it resisted their attempts, and Rey barely held it open as they each slipped out into the corridor.

The hall lit red as the warning alarms sounded, and Rey – unused to such a loud and obnoxious noise from working with dead machinery her entire life – could not concentrate enough to sense the group of Stormtroopers that stood in the hall as they turned a corner.

The silver-armored captain stepped forward, her blaster held loosely in both hands. “The Supreme Leader would like to avoid the loss of the lives of such powerful Force-sensitives. Lay down your arms, and he will negotiate a deal with all of you.”

Rey froze as the captain mentioned the Supreme Leader. They had not defeated Snoke. He was still in charge, which meant Kylo’s mental state was again in danger. Her worry for the Knight intensified, and she channeled her feelings for him through the Force as she threw her hand forward.

The captain flew backwards into her troops, and Rey ran forward, pointing her stolen blaster at the helmet. The red lights of the hall glinted off the silver-plated metal. “How about _we_ make a deal? Let Kylo Ren out, and I won’t pull this trigger.”

The captain kicked out at Rey, and she jumped backwards, swinging the blaster out like a short staff to knock another Stormtrooper away from her. Blaster fire shot from behind her and slammed into the trooper’s stomach. Rey shot another trooper and watched as Leia surged forward. The Resistance general’s hand raised and pushed the captain against the wall.

Rey noticed Asarla had grabbed a blaster, and they both used a combination of the Force and the weapons to fight off the remaining six troopers. Her eyes darted to Leia, and she saw the general rip off the helmet of the immobilized captain, revealing the face of a woman with sleek blonde hair. “Where is my son?”

A sharp pain shot up Rey’s leg, and she fell to the floor, the blaster clattering out of her hands. She cursed her distraction and raised her hand to push the oncoming trooper away when a blast cut through the thick armor covering the Stormtrooper’s chest. Another blast hit directly in the center of the damage, and the trooper collapsed to the floor. Rey turned to thank Asarla, but the dark-haired man who stood with the blaster held expertly in his hands was most definitely not the Togruta.

Kylo lowered the blaster and moved over to Rey. If she had not been looking for it, she would have missed the hesitant limp in his strides. His right sleeve was rolled to his upper arm, and blood dripped quickly from a jagged wound in his inner elbow. Rey guessed he had ripped out the needle collecting his blood.

He helped her to her feet with his left hand as his right gripped the blaster. Rey glanced down at the dead Stormtrooper, wondering how the Knight had learned to shoot so well when he had dedicated most of his life to the lightsaber.

Leia rushed over to them, and Rey saw the female captain on the floor, an angry red gash on her temple contrasting with the paleness of her skin. The general looked at the Knight with the concern of a mother, and Rey let a short laugh escape her lips as she realized Kylo was the son of Leia and Han Solo. He likely had held a blaster long before he ever set eyes on a lightsaber.

Leia pressed her hand to the unscarred side of Kylo’s face, and Rey expected him to recoil. When he did not, the general wrapped her arms around his middle. The soft murmur of Kylo’s words cut off as a laugh echoed throughout the dim hallway.

Rey turned to see Hux at the edge of the hall. The red lighting of the hall cast sinister shadows over his face, and his ginger hair was slicked back. She held up the blaster, leaning on her uninjured leg.

She felt Asarla move next to her, and Leia stood next to Kylo as he turned to face the redhead by Rey’s side, and she, too, held up a blaster. “General Hux.”

Hux’s thin lips curled back into a sneer. “It’s Supreme Leader Hux now.” His gloved hand shot forward at incredible speed, and Rey fell backwards with the Force.

**AN: Leave a note, lovely people.**


	42. Chapter 42

The air rushed out of Rey’s lungs as she smashed against a wall. She dropped to the floor and landed with her torso half on top of Kylo’s back as she sucked air into her lungs. She felt a pressure envelop her body, and her body froze as she started to lift herself off Kylo. The Force around her had a distinctly familiar feel to it as it held her in place.

Hux’s boots clicked sharply against the metal of the floor as he slowly approached them. “I should thank you, Ren, for getting rid of Snoke for me.”

Rey’s body rose into the air with the Force, and she watched as Kylo was lifted up beside her. She pushed against Hux’s control of the Force over her with all her strength, but she only felt it constrict around her further. Her eyes followed the redhead as he stood in front of the Knight.

Hux’s gloved hand rose and ran mockingly over the scar that cut through Kylo’s face. “If I had known your midi-chlorian count was higher than Darth Vader’s himself, I might’ve tried this sooner.” Kylo looked as if he would like nothing more than to drive a lightsaber through Hux’s chest. His body vibrated slightly as he too fought against the hold on him. “It is regrettable that the Force chose _you_ to carry such power. Someone tainted by Solo and Organa. I would kill you now and be done with it, but you do have your uses.”

Hux lowered his hand slowly, and Kylo’s body dropped down so that he was on his knees in front of the self-proclaimed Supreme Leader. The Knight glared up at him in fury, and Hux’s lips pulled into a smirk. “Unfortunately, I need your blood to increase my power. But don't worry. Soon, I will have mastered the ability to manipulate minds, and you will be _mine._ ”

Rey caught movement to the right of her, and Hux suddenly fell to the floor under Leia’s weight. “Not my son, you bastard!”

Rey crumpled to the floor as the Force released her, and she felt Kylo’s hand grab her arm. She looked up to see Leia’s fist connect with the side of Hux’s face, and the redheaded man shoved the general backwards with the Force, freezing her against the wall.

Kylo’s voice was urgent as he whispered softly, “He has both our powers; we can’t defeat him like we did Snoke. Take Asarla and find our lightsabers.” Rey stared at him in disbelief, unable to fathom why he thought lightsabers were the answer if they could not effectively fight Hux with the Force. He hissed softly and pushed her toward the hall that lead toward the turbolift. “They should be on the lowest level. _Go._ Run.”

Rey watched him immediately turn away and push Hux away from his mother with the Force. She snatched one of the fallen blasters and took Asarla’s hand, jogging down the hall toward the lift. She turned the corner and stopped short. Finn stood in front of a platoon of Stormtroopers.

Rey raised her stolen blaster, preparing to defend herself and Asarla when Finn dropped his own blaster and held up his hands in a gesture of peace. “We’re here to help.”

She stared dumbfounded at the former Stormtrooper. The trooper next to him pulled off the white helmet, revealing the face of a young woman with short brunette hair. “We’re ready to fight against the monsters that took us from our families.”

Finn’s teeth flashed against the red emergency lights in the tall as he grinned. “More platoons are on their way down. We hit a snag when the lifts stopped working, but they’re opening the staircases.”

The anger of the Stormtroopers mixed with their newly-found freedom through the Force, and Rey found herself nodding slowly as a plan formed in her mind. “Ren and General Organa are fighting Hux. Can you give us a distraction?”

Finn glanced at his comrades and nodded briefly. “How long do you need?”

“As much time as you can get me.”

()()()()

A sharp clang sounded from the hall, and Rey closed her eyes for a moment as she resisted the urge to charge around the corner to help Kylo. She glanced to her left and nodded once to Finn. He returned the nod and gestured with two fingers to the Stormtroopers behind him. They rushed around the corner as one large unit, firing their blasters with full force.

Rey dashed down another hallway with Asarla, following her instincts with the Force to travel through the labyrinth of turns to find Kylo. She slowed as red blasts shot from a nearby hallway and hit the wall in front of them, and she could make out two figures leaning against the wall on the other side of the opening to the hall.

A Stormtrooper flew against the wall and sank motionless to the floor. Rey flinched at the sight and reached out with the Force to brush against Kylo’s mind. The taller figure on the other side of the hall turned toward her, and another blast smashed against the wall, illuminating his worn face. He held up his hands, and Rey somehow knew what he meant. She pulled Asarla forward with her without giving herself a chance to doubt, and the oncoming blaster fire froze as they ran past the battle-consumed hallway.

Kylo dropped his hands the moment they cleared the immediate danger. “You couldn’t find our lightsabers?”

Rey shook her head and glanced back the hall as another Stormtrooper fell on top of the first. “No, but I’ve got an idea. We should get somewhere we can’t be disturbed.”

Kylo’s eyebrows pulled together for a moment, but he seemed to decide they did not have time to debate. He beckoned with a tilt of his head as he began moving down the hall with Leia, holding a blaster in his right hand. They moved quickly down the straight corridor, and Rey noticed the Knight walked with a growing limp. Kylo stopped by a doorway and pushed open the door with the Force. He turned to her with an expectant look as they crowded inside the dark room.

Rey met his gaze, keeping the rest of her attention toward the door to sense anyone approaching. “Do you know how to do a Force meld?”

One of Kylo’s dark eyebrows raised slowly. “I’ve… read about them, but there haven’t exactly been many other Force-sensitives around to try it with.”

Leia’s hope resonated through the Force as she gazed up at her son. “There are now. This would give us an advantage over Hux?”

Kylo let out a long breath, his eyes flicking over to Leia for a brief moment. “Theoretically, it helps Jedi coordinate during battle and combine power.”

“Then let’s do it,” Leia decreed with a matter-of-fact tone. “How?”

The Knight’s uneasiness hit Rey in waves through the Force. “None of us have ever attempted this. It could end in disaster.” He paused for a moment, raking a hand through his hair. “It’s a Light Side technique. I won’t be able to help control it.”

The walls shuddered as a loud crash echoed down the hall toward the doorway, and Rey’s stomach clenched in fear. “We have to do this now, or those Stormtroopers are giving their lives for us in vain if we don’t stop Hux.”

Kylo’s resignation to the decision resonated in the Force as he gripped Leia’s and Rey’s hands. “If anyone of us are hurt or killed while we’re bonded, it’ll hurt the others ten-fold, possibly to the point of losing control.”

Asarla’s musical voice chimed from beside Rey as the Togruta took her and Leia’s free hands, “Then let’s not get hurt or killed.”

()()()()

It was the strangest sensation Rey had ever experienced.

Kylo’s mind brushed against hers as they formed the connection they had become adept at during their healing sessions. Their power melded seamlessly together as Light and Dark balanced each other. She sensed a hesitation from the Knight and then felt him latch onto her Light as he moved deeper. His consciousness seemed to envelop her own, and she instinctively pushed back to link their minds – their identities – together. His intense emotions – worry, fear, pain – flooded through her more fiercely than she had ever sensed. She had not known someone could _feel_ so deeply.

Before she could determine his reaction to her own emotions, she felt their melded consciousness expand at Kylo’s prodding. The Light provided primarily by her own powers pressed into Asarla’s mind. The Togruta initially resisted their attempt, and Rey squeezed her hand reassuringly. The mental defenses tentatively slid away, and their shared consciousness encompassed Asarla’s. The young woman’s fear and determination mixed with hers and Kylo’s emotions. They took a long moment to adjust to the near-chaos of their three thoughts and perspectives.

Rey sensed Kylo’s decision to continue a moment before he pressed their merged consciousness forward once more. Something about the general’s mind seemed familiar as they touched her mind, and as flashes of memories about a small raven-haired boy danced through Rey’s thoughts, she realized how alike Kylo and his mother were in perceptions and understandings. Although untrained in the Force, Leia’s older mind was much more massive than the young presence of Asarla, and she felt her years of experience and wisdom bolster their already formidable power.

Rey was no longer an individual, and yet, she felt wholly herself as she opened her eyes to gaze at each member of their small circle. Each face wore a tight expression as they each became accustomed to their meld. The Force helped her keep her own thoughts straight, but she could feel – _hear_ – the similar thoughts about the strange sensation of the newly formed bond.

A dull throbbing persisted in her lower back, and she experienced Kylo’s relief at how much better his healing wound felt with the pain shared within the meld. The pain lingered in the back of her mind, but it was not unmanageable.

One of them – Kylo, her mind told her distantly – sensed the approach of non-Force users, and they turned to the door as one, each ready to fight.

Finn’s back appeared in the doorway, and he waved his hand as several Stormtroopers ran past. “Go to the next level! We can’t hold them off any longer!”

Red blaster fire took down two of the retreating Stormtroopers, and Finn lifted his own blaster and fired back. Rey immediately ran forward, her hand raised as she called upon the shared Force power to stop a blast directed toward Finn’s head. The bolt froze mid-air, and she felt Kylo’s influence turn it around. Rey released the bolt, and it shot in the opposite direction.

Finn froze in shock and then turned his head, his serious expression melting into one of relief. “Thank the stars. Some of the troopers I couldn’t get to are defending Hux.”

Rey flinched and closed her eyes for a moment, sensing with the amplified power of the Force exactly seventy-one Stormtroopers surrounding the presence of Hux’s stolen midi-chlorians. About twenty – no, nineteen – friendly fighters remained nearby.

They left the room without saying a word to each other, and Kylo’s wish for a lightsaber echoed through each of their minds. Rey stepped into the hall first and shoved backward three oncoming Stormtroopers that she instinctively knew did not wish them well. She followed the presence of Hux down the corridor, her mind singly focused on taking down the man that threatened to bring the galaxy to its knees.

Kylo stopped moving and turned to face another closed door. Rey paused as his senses rolled through her, and he opened the door with a wave of his hand. The butt of a blaster swung out toward his face, and he stepped back to avoid it as Rey recognized the assailant. Poe.

The pilot squinted at Kylo, but a grin slowly spread across his face as he saw Rey. The faces of Calfan and Avin appeared behind him, and the female Knight nodded toward them before she dug in a bag at her hip. Avin slapped Kylo’s shoulder, eliciting an annoyed expression from his fellow Knight as he glanced at Calfan. “I told you we shouldn’t’ve shielded from the Force.”

The woman shrugged and produced a long metal object that she tossed to Rey. “He still found us, didn’t he?” She felt the familiar weight in her hands as she caught it, and her twin blue blades activated. The sounds of other lightsabers unsheathing reached her ears, and she looked up to see Leia holding Luke’s green blade while Kylo and Asarla each clutched one of the white sabers. 

Poe whistled softly as the lightsabers each activated, and he grinned as he saw Finn approach. “Now it’s a party. Let’s go take down the bastards.”

()()()()

The pandemonium of battle engulfed Rey as she stood back-to-back with Asarla, Finn, and Calfan. Their bonded minds allowed them to fight seamlessly together, but the sheer number of troopers slowed them down as they continuously dodged attacks and tried to take each down to get to the Supreme Leader. The other members of their group fought in a similar circle at the other end of the hall. Hux, who Rey realized rarely got his own hands dirty, had all but disappeared the moment the Stormtroopers had engulfed them.

She spun her staff into a nearby trooper and pushed him backwards into his comrades with the Force before she swiped the other end up to deflect a blast aimed at Finn. He fired in return, and Rey twisted to defend Calfan’s side from a baton wielded by yet another trooper. She brought up her staff, and the blue blade connected with the white helmet. She pressed it forward, and let out a sharp cry of pain as agony danced up her back.

The pain laced through the Force meld, and Asarla stumbled forward as she felt the same injury. Rey did not move for several long moments as her mind finally worked out that she herself had not taken the injury. Leia’s fear accented the pain, and she realized the pain originated from Kylo’s back. He tried blocking them from his mind and pain, but their established meld made it impossible to disconnect from the pain.

“Rey!” Finn’s shout barely registered in her mind, and she looked at him through a haze as her friend took the shock of the baton that had been intended for her. His body shook as electricity coursed through him, and he fell to the floor. The sound of his weight hitting the metal snapped her out of the cloud of pain, and her lightsaber cut through the baton. Her anger at the attacking Stormtrooper fueled her muscles as she swung her deadly blade cleanly through the middle of the trooper.

She turned to help Finn up, and everything seemed to slow. Her right hand let go of her saberstaff as she reached with the Force to stop the oncoming blast. Pain shot up her back once again, and she was too slow. It struck Finn directly in the chest as he began to get to his feet.

Her vocal cords ached with her scream as Finn collapsed. Her mind seemed to go numb, and she did not register when the remaining fifty-odd Stormtroopers each fell dead to the floor.

_Rey._

Her eyes remained glued on Finn’s motionless form as she dropped to her knees next to him.

_Rey._

Finn, who had dragged her into the entire mess. Finn, who had defended her on the Starkiller base. Finn, who had wanted so desperately to fight. Finn, who now she realized had betrayed the Resistance with the intention of igniting a Stormtrooper rebellion. Finn, who was her friend, died bravely.

“Rey.”

She tried to brush away the annoying voice, but a familiar hand rested on her shoulder. Kylo’s deep voice sounded in her ear, his tone strained as he felt all that she did. “He wouldn’t want you to fall apart now.”

He gripped her arm and pulled her to her feet, and she leaned against Kylo as she took in the devastation she had wrought with their combined Force powers. Tears streamed down Poe’s face, and he had his arms wrapped around Leia, who whispered something softly to him. Rey could feel her grief echo in the other minds of the meld.

“I had hoped my forces were competent enough to take care of you,” Hux’s cold voice sounded from behind Rey. “But it appears if you want something done right, you must do it yourself.”

The stolen power of the Force constricted around Rey’s throat, and the sensation doubled as Kylo, too, began choking. Her lungs screamed for air, and she dimly felt Leia and Asarla drawing upon their shared powers to throw off Hux’s control. Rey gasped for air with Kylo, and through watery eyes, she saw Poe rise into the air by his throat. Anger flashed through her, and her eyes fell upon Finn. He would not take another of her friends.

 _Now._ Leia’s thought resonated in their bond, and they each held out their hands, throwing all of their united power at Hux.

The Supreme Leader dropped Poe and fought back with the Force, and Hux’s frenzied want for power and control clashed with their undivided want to bring balance back to the galaxy.

The idea originated from Kylo. Rey held off Hux with Leia and Asarla, and a small portion of their shared power diverted away as the Knight shifted his attention.

Hux’s body shuddered slightly, and he lashed out fearfully with the Force in an effort to save himself. Rey’s back hit the floor, and she lifted her head to see the damage had already been done. Hux grabbed at his chest, and Kylo, who lay next to her, jerked his hand to the side to finish the job. The Supreme Leader’s heart burst within himself.

They lay in stunned silence for well over a minute before Kylo pulled himself to his feet and offered a hand to Rey. She took it without a word and stood, her body trembling as the adrenaline slowly left her system. Kylo pressed a hand to his back and leaned against her shoulder, and she felt the intense pain reflect in her own body.

They won.

Rey closed her eyes and clutched Kylo’s hand as the realization flooded through them.

Panic spiked through their Force meld. She opened her eyes in time to see the silver-armored Stormtrooper behind Kylo ignite the fallen white lightsaber and drive it through Leia, who jumped to save her son.

**AN: Whew. That was a bear to write, and it is late, so I apologize for the poor editing on my part. I will go back and fix things at a later time, but I wanted to get this up for y’all. I estimate about one or two more chapters left of this journey. Thanks for reading!**


	43. Chapter 43

Rey knew the intense torment of injuries, the painful cramps that came with starvation, the weakness of malnutrition, the grief for her unknown family, and the fresh sorrow at the loss for Finn.

And none of those sensations compared to the agony that ripped through her mind and body as she watched Leia fall to the floor. Kylo’s horror mixed with the pain radiating from his mother. Fury emanated from him, and a guttural snarl escaped his clenched teeth, “Phasma.” The lightsaber the Stormtrooper captain held jumped out of her hand, turned in the air, and plunged through the silver armor.

The Knight dropped to his knees next to his mother.

_No, no, no, no. That should've been for me. I deserved it for what I've done._

_It was my lightsaber._

_My handsome son… My Ben…_

_No._

_Oh, Lord Ren._

_Kylo…_

_Why?_

Rey pressed a hand to her forehead as she struggled to distinguish her own thoughts from the other three Force users. Emotions crashed through her from their shared consciousness, and her middle felt as if fire ate at her organs. She could not move, could not fathom the pain and grief that resonated through their bond. She felt as if her heart had shattered with the loss of Finn, and she vaguely felt something wet drip down her face. She did not think she could handle the loss of another person, let alone a member of their Force meld.

She lost herself in the meld for what felt like days until a hand on her arm brought her back to reality. Asarla blinked up at her, the white pigments on her face twisted with pain. Guilt accented the combined pain from the Togruta, and her musical voice held the undertone of agony. “You can Force heal. We can try…” Rey numbly allowed Asarla to pull her a few steps to Leia’s side.

Leia’s consciousness began to fade, and Rey felt as if a part of herself were dying. Besides the burning pain, it felt… almost peaceful.

_So much like his father…_

Despair flowed through her as Kylo held his mother in his arms. Leia’s arm rose weakly to brush her fingers against the side of her son’s face. Tears flowed down the Knight’s cheeks. Rey had never seen Kylo cry. It was simultaneously the most terrible and beautiful expression she had ever seen as behind it held remorse, anguish, and heartbreak. Emotions so intense Rey thought as if she might claw her own heart out pulsed through the meld and across his tear-streaked face. Except rage. For Kylo Ren no longer clung to the fury that drove his power. He had none to give as he felt his mother dying in his arms because of him. 

They knelt next to the general, and Rey felt Asarla amass the jumbled power of the Force into one coherent mission. _Save her._

A small orange-red hand hovered over the wound through Leia’s stomach. Rey’s hand drifted out next to Asarla’s almost of its own accord. The energy of the Force almost tangibly crackled between them, and Kylo’s larger palm covered both of their hands as they willed their combined power to obey them once again.

Rey and Kylo’s experience Force healing fused with Asarla’s pure determination. Rey thought she sensed the Force of Mortis bend to their will to assist in their crucial task. They wielded neither Light nor Dark but rather the Force in its purest form. The Force as it had originally intended to be before the nature of man had inflicted its nature upon it.

The wound began to seal steadily under their direction until they were sure the damage had reversed. A circular scar remained on the general’s abdomen. She gasped in relief, but her smile slowly trembled away as Leia’s consciousness continued to fade. Her eyes closed, and her hand rested limply on Kylo’s shoulder.

_No. Not you, too._

Rey could barely sense the mind of the general. She steeled herself to sense the passing of a great soul.

A fresh tear rolled down the scarred side of Kylo’s face and dropped onto Leia’s cheek as he leaned over his mother. _I’m sorry._

“I love you.”

Kylo’s words resonated through the bond and aloud in the air. Rey closed her eyes and clutched Asarla’s hand.

“I know.”

Leia’s shaky voice barely reached her ears, but Kylo’s shock and subsequent joy flooded Rey’s mind. Leia stared at him with a growing smile, and a bit of color returned to her skin. His arms wrapped around his mother’s form, and Leia weakly held her son in return for what felt like hours.

Kylo looked to Rey and Asarla as he finally loosened his hold on his mother. “Thank you.”

()()()()

They held a funeral on D’Qar three days later.

Two white caskets drifted side-by-side past the gathered witnesses. A procession of former Stormtroopers marched behind the caskets along with the pilots of the Resistance. Leia sat in a hover chair next to Rey, and she could sense her grief as Kylo Ren led the casket carrying Luke Skywalker in place of the Jedi’s sister. The assembled mass of Resistance members still felt wary around the Knight, but with their Force meld, they had been able to show a great number of people the memories of their battle with Hux.

Poe walked next to Kylo, leading the last resting place of Finn. Tears openly fell down the pilot’s face, and he kept glancing at the white casket as if hoping Finn would jump out of it with a broad grin.

The two procession leaders stopped at the edge of a huge lake and stepped aside, allowing the caskets to hover past them and over the water. The rest of the procession gathered next to them, and Rey moved with the others to watch the white caskets drift away from them.

Poe took two short staffs from Jessika Pava and lit one end of each on fire with a small device. Kylo raised his hands, and the flaming staffs levitated into the air. They shot in a graceful arc over the water, and each hit one of the caskets. A moment later, fire engulfed their fallen friends. The onlookers watched in respectful silence while the burning caskets disappeared from view.

The crowd began to disperse among soft murmurs. The pilots of the Blue Squadron surrounded Poe, but they parted to allow their commander room to wrap his arms tightly around the short frame of Avin. The two remained locked together as Rey passed by, and the other pilots nodded respectfully to her. BB-8 rolled around Poe and nudged Rey’s ankle gently. She gave the droid a soft smile and knelt to adjust its bent antenna.

The motion felt difficult with the large worn glove covering her cybernetic hand. She needed a new one that fit better, but she did not want to give up something of Kylo’s. BB-8 whirred a soft thanks when she finished reattaching the antenna before rolling back to care for its master.

Rey glanced behind her and noticed Leia speaking quietly with Chewie and C-3PO. She wound through the crowd until she found Kylo standing at the edge of the lake as he looked out at the water. He wore simple black clothes almost identical to the ones Rey borrowed from the Resistance, but his thick belt still wrapped around his waist.

Everyone kept their distance from the Knight, even Calfan, who stood a respectful few paces away from him. Rey stepped next to him and took his hand in her good one.

Kylo glanced down at her, his expression weary. “I’ll be leaving tomorrow.”

Rey let out a long sigh. Both she and Asarla had sensed his restlessness. “Leia needs you here.”

“She does not need someone like me around while the remains of the First Order are being cleaned up.” Kylo slipped his hand out of Rey’s and crossed his arms over his chest.

Rey frowned and tapped the lightsaber at her leg. “She absolutely needs someone like you. Didn’t the Jedi try to keep peace in the galaxy?”

“At one point they did.” Kylo’s hand slid down to his hip. His fingers grasped at air for a moment before he seemed to remember that he did not carry a lightsaber for the comfort of others staying at the base. “But I am not a Jedi.”

“You could be.”

Kylo’s head turned sharply to face her, and she felt his surprise mingled with doubt. “No one would trust me after everyone I've killed.”

“I would.” Rey stepped in front of the Knight, feeling water under her boots as she stepped into the very edge of the lake. “Without Luke, you’re the only person who knows the ways of the Force and lightsabers well enough to teach it to others.”

His expression turned dark. “The Dark Side of the Force, you mean.”

“Can’t either of you feel it?” Asarla’s light voice sounded from behind Kylo. The Knight turned to face her, and he and Rey both stared at the Togruta in confusion. Asarla rolled her blue eyes. “The Force is balanced. At least for now. I can’t sense the Light or Dark from either of you. From any of us.”

Rey exchanged a glance with Kylo. She had gotten so used to his presence through their Force bond that she had not realized the constant war inside of him had quelled. The Dark Side no longer came off of him in waves even after they had severed the Force meld. “Did you know?”

Kylo shrugged, his gaze finding Leia. His mother nodded slowly as Chewie and C-3PO talked non-stop and stole a glance toward her son. “We’ve spent so much time bonded to fix my back that I didn’t really notice.”

Asarla held out one of her two white lightsabers to Kylo. “We all know the Force won’t stay balanced, especially if there are Force-sensitives who do not know what they can do.”

Kylo wrapped his hand around the hilt but did not pull it from Asarla’s small hand. “I won’t shove Force-sensitives down a single path if they don’t want it.”

“My grandmother wielded these lightsabers as a Gray Jedi. You should use it until you can make a new one.” Asarla let go of the lightsaber to allow Kylo to take it. “We could start a new Jedi Order as neither Dark nor Light.”

Kylo’s hand drifted down to clasp Rey’s. She sensed a newfound hope alighting from the Knight. He still needed to recover physically and mentally from the events of the past weeks. They all did. But they had a future without the threat of Snoke or Hux.

Kylo tested the weight of the lightsaber in his free hand for a moment before he let it hang at his belt. “I don't think an Order would be the correct word. Perhaps an alliance?”

Rey felt a grin pull at her mouth. “And Force-users who want to train can join us.” She cast her eyes over the diminishing crowd of Resistance and Stormtrooper members. “An alliance of unaffiliated Jedi under the command of no organization to keep the peace.”

Asarla nodded slowly, her own lips pulling into a large smile. “We could make use of your home on Kiros, Lord Ren. There are plenty of rooms.”

“Am I hearing something about living on Kiros?” Avin’s loud voice interrupted the start of Kylo’s protest. Poe stood next to him, his eyes red. Rey noticed his hand clutched the blonde Knight’s.

Asarla nodded, her excitement radiating through the Force. “We’re going to start a place for Force-sensitives to live and train.”

Avin studied Kylo for a moment before giving a brief dip of his head. “All right. We’re in.”

“But you’re not – “

“I think you need some non-Force users to help keep an eye on things,” Calfan interrupted Kylo as she joined their growing group.

“We’ll leave tomorrow, then.” Avin clapped Kylo’s shoulder, and the taller Knight looked unsure. “Let’s go get some food.”

They began trudging toward the base, but Rey remained still and tightened her grip on Kylo’s hand. He turned to look at her with a questioning look.

They had not found time to be alone together for the past few days with the overcrowded base, funeral preparations, and numerous meetings with government representatives of different planetary systems. “Are you all right with this?”

Kylo ran his free hand through his hair. “I _was_ planning on finding an isolated planet.”

Rey let go of his hand and crossed her arms over her chest. “Take it from someone who lived on one for fifteen years, you don’t want to do that.”

He turned his head away, and Rey sensed his guilt through the Force. “Besides, we shared minds, and you, Kylo Ren,” she met his gaze and took both of his hands, “most certainly have more feelings for me than you care to admit.”

Kylo let out a long breath, but the corners of his mouth twitched in amusement. “You couldn’t tell with our bond? Maybe you do need more instruction in the Force.”

Rey grinned and pulled Kylo closer, studying the way the setting sun reflected in his eyes. “I need a teacher.”

She kissed him.

**AN: And there you have it, ladies and gents. Thank you so much to all of you for taking this long journey with me, especially to those who took the time to give me your comments and thoughts. I did not expect so many beautiful and kind words when I sat down to first start writing this, but it has been so much fun. Stay tuned for a short epilogue that should be coming within a week (hopefully). Also, brownie points to everyone who caught the Harry Potter reference in the last chapter. I love all you nerds. Thank you so much for reading.**

**Quick update: I listened to the Doctor's Theme (Doctor Who soundtrack) for the first portion of this, Stoick's Ship (How to Train Your Dragon OST) for the funeral, and Peace (Avatar: the Last Airbender) for the last little portion if you musically inclined people want to take a listen!:)**


	44. Epilogue

_Four Years Later_

Rey woke to the sound of a yell, followed by a loud thump against the door. She sat up with wide eyes and relaxed as two distinct laughs floated in the air. “Don't wake them!”

She slowly got to her feet, running her hand through her long hair. Her fingers caught in a few tangles, and she tugged them out as she threw open the dark curtains. Sunlight flooded the darkened room and fell upon the dark green covers that lay over Kylo. The Knight stirred and turned his head away from the light.

The strong presence of multiple Force-sensitives emanated from the main hall, and she felt a twinge of excitement in her stomach as she quickly began changing out of her sleeping clothes. “Leia’s already here.”

Kylo let out a long sigh and slowly pushed himself up, running a hand through his dark hair. “She’s early.”

Rey found a discarded left glove on the edge of the bed and slipped it over her metal hand. It clung snugly up her forearm, and she used it to grab her lightsaber. She attached it to its usual place on her leg as she watched Kylo slowly get up and rummage through the dresser. The room still held much of Kylo’s apparent obsession with black, but Rey’s personal touches lent color – mostly green – in the artwork that she would never have been able to afford on Jakku. Some of her clothes lay strewn on the floor near her side of the bed whereas Kylo kept his side organized.

She opened the door with a flick of her hand, and Kylo followed her down the corridor as he shrugged on a jacket over his red shirt. One of Ahsoka Tano’s white lightsabers hung at his hip. They entered the large main hall together, and Rey felt her lips pull into a grin as she took in the scene before them.

Asarla’s two younger brothers sat at the long table – which they still replaced quite regularly – and practiced moving a pear through the air with the Force. Leia sat nearby with a small brown-haired boy in her lap. His small hand clutched a doll made of string and faded orange cloth as he grinned toothily up at her. Asarla chased after a girl with jet-black hair who ran on quick, short legs with a white lightsaber hilt in both hands.

Kylo took several steps forward and knelt down next to the two-year-old, snatching the lightsaber. He picked up the girl and let the Togruta take the weapon as he brushed away a smear of blue milk on the child’s lip. “Kira, what are you doing with Aunt Asarla’s lightsaber?”

Kira’s face lit up, and her high-pitched voice was hurried as she tried to speak all of her words at once. “I wanna show Gra’ma how good I’m gettin’!”

Rey exchanged a glance with the Knight, and they walked slowly to the table. She ran a hand through the child’s haphazard hair to smooth it down. “You can show Grandma with your practice saber, remember? You’ll be able to use lightsabers when you’re older.”

“I’ll never be old enough!” Kira pouted as Kylo sat next to his mother at the table.

Leia beamed at the two from over the head of the boy. “How’s your back, Ben?”

Kylo let out a slow sigh. He allowed Leia to call him by his birth name, but he had trouble accepting it himself. He never fully shed the mask of Kylo Ren, and to both him and Rey, the name was part of him more than Ben Solo ever could be. Returning to Ben Solo would negate much of what he had done as Kylo Ren. “It’s fine.” He paused to watch Kira play with a piece of his jacket. “Twinges more now that I have to run after these two.”

Leia gasped in fake shock, and she looked down at the boy on her lap. “Are you causing your father trouble, Anakin?” The boy looked down and played with the doll in his hands until Leia laughed. “Good. He deserves it for what he did at your age.”

Rey snorted and sank her teeth into a piece of fruit as she leaned against the table. The twins jumped to the floor and ran under the table together with collective giggles that Rey had heard by their door earlier. “You didn’t have twin trouble-makers to deal with.”

She sensed a small spike of guilt from Leia that was quickly replaced with love for the small family in front of her. “I also didn’t have such a wonderful mother to help me.” She smiled innocently at Kylo, who rolled his eyes.

“And your oh-so-generous friends make your lives easy.” Avin’s boisterous voice sounded from the wide door. Poe trailed after him with BB-8 at his side. Raindrops dotted both men’s clothes, and they grinned at Rey as they took food from the table.

The twins reappeared from under the table and ran to the droid with exclamations of “BB!” The round astromech gave a series of beeps and whirs as it rolled around the two with flashing lights.

Rey took Kira’s place on Kylo’s lap and pressed a short kiss to his lips before she watched their children play with BB-8. Less than five years had taken her from a lonely life on Jakku to saving the galaxy to a family. She loved their life together, although she knew both she and Kylo felt restless at times.

Poe handed Rey a small data chip, and he spoke around a mouth full of food. “We found reports of some Force-sensitives on Chandrila.”

A hologram projected from the chip as Rey pressed the button, depicting fuzzy images of two young teenagers – one human, the other Twi’lek – shoving a group of people back with the Force. She glanced at Asarla’s brothers, who stared at the holo curiously.

Kylo’s interest radiated through the Force, and Rey smiled up at him. “I think we’re long overdue for a trip, don’t you?”

**AN: I did say this was going to be short, right? I thought about leaving this story at the last chapter, but I did promise an epilogue! Thank you so much for following Galaxy Under Siege. I had so much fun writing it for everyone and reading your thoughts and opinions. I would never have finished it without such incredible feedback and inspiration from every review, favorite, and follow.**

**Shameless advertising time? If you’re in the mood for more fluffy Reylo similar to this epilogue, check out my current work entitled Calm that follows Rey and Kylo after the war. ALSO, I am planning another fic soon that will start once I solidify a general plotline. This new one will likely be darker, as I would like to explore more of Kylo Ren, so keep your eyes peeled if you are interested.**

**Thank you, as always, for reading! - jitterygummy**


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